Shards of a Cosmic Crystal
by Atraea
Summary: The arrival of new Sailor Scouts brings an enemy from long ago and the search for the Cosmic Crystal. But why are these Scouts so hostile, and just why do they claim the Silver Crystal is theirs? I suck at summaries. T for space. Please read and review!
1. Prologue: The Past and the Plan

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Sailor Moon. The Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adapation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway.

Please do not steal any of my fanfiction, plot concepts or characters, or I will throw my desk at you.

* * *

Once upon a time, there was the Silver Millennium, a period of wondrous magnificence and unparalleled beauty. In this time of prosperity and power, there were protectors; pretty-suited maidens known as Sailor Soldiers. The most famous of these warriors were the Planetary Sailors of the Sol System, known as the Sailor Scouts, protectors of the Lunar Kingdom, lead by the loving and gracious Queen Serenity.

However, there were also other kingdoms that coexisted with the Lunar Kingdom, other Kingdoms of Moons, such as the Io Kingdom, the Titan Kingdom, the Triton Kingdom…even the Dysnomia Kingdom. As a proposal of unity between the monarchs of the Moon Kingdom civilizations, the Moon Scouts team was created. Each Moon Kingdom was to send their best sailor to take their place among the greatest sailor team ever assembled. With the Moon Scouts, the Moon Crystal was created. A piece of every moon's core was brought together and formed a multi-colored crystal called the Cosmic Moon Crystal.

However, tragedy struck the Moon Scouts. The Dysnomia Kingdom began a crusade to destroy the Cosmic Moon Crystal forever by wiping out those powerful Moon Kingdoms. With the Moon dead, the part of the Moon Crystal the Kingdom had donated would be useless. With his life, Queen Serenity's husband banished the Dysnomia Kingdom by using the Cosmic Moon Crystal.

Still, the Cosmic Moon Crystal was not to last. Shortly after the fall of the Dysnomia Kingdom, the Crystal broke apart into hundreds of smaller Moon Crystals, which disappeared. Many say this was because, after the threat of the Dysnomia Kingdom, the Moon Kingdoms began to drift, there were quarrels and battles between the Moon Scouts. Then, one by one, the Moon Kingdoms broke the alliance. The Cosmic Moon Crystal lost its magic and disappeared when the alliances were broken, leaving behind only the small crystal provided by Luna-the Earth's Moon.

Only the Imperial Silver Moon Crystal was left.

Queen Serenity-left with only the Silver Moon Crystal-panicked. Now that her husband was gone, only she was left to protect her kingdom and the planets in the Silver Alliance. Not only that, but the Silver Moon Crystal was barely powerful enough to provide the Lunar Kingdom with prosperity. Without the Cosmic Moon Crystal, Serenity was hopeless.

Queen Beryl of the Negaverse took advantage of this. She, with her followers, began another crusade-this time, to destroy the Silver Millennium and rule the universe. Queen Serenity chose the same path as her husband. With her life, Queen Serenity used the Silver Moon Crystal to vanquish them also and the rest is history.

But the Moon Scouts…did they vanquish with the Silver Millennium?

No. Their story just got better.

* * *

It was midnight; almost all of the city's gleaming lights had faded, leaving only a few stray fireflies of light. Vague, shifting blurs could be made out as two figures jumped across the roof tops.

The first figure was a creature that somewhat resembled a wolf, sharp fangs were bared and glistened in the moonlight, its pelt was gray and blood-stained, in it's immense long claws was a small, oddly shaped stone.

The second figure was tall and slender; she wore a Sailor Suit and seemed like a blaze of light, her outfit reflecting the glow of the starlight.

Finally, the creature stopped and turned to face its attacker. The Sailor Soldier stood boldly in front of him, her muscles tense and ready for battle. She pointed at him with a look of pure determination painted across her face.

"Hand it over," She spat. The wolf sneered and held up the stone in clear view.

"If you want it," he replied coolly. "Fight me for it."

She didn't wait another moment. The girl lunged, striking out at the monster. It dodged and attacked in return. Black light seeped out of the monster's paw, swirling into a larger beam of bright, black light. The girl leaped out of the way just in time, and countered by throwing a punch at the monster, distracting it long enough for her to land a kick. The monster used another beam of dark light, which hit her leg causing the girl to lose her balance. She quickly pushed herself up, but the monster was already standing above her.

It sneered. "Game over,"

The monster gasped as its shoulders were thrown backwards; it barely managed to maintain its balance as he slid across the rooftops. The monster turned around; a single iron disc lay stuck in the ground. The monster frowned. It looked around her, hoping to find the attacker. When he finally identified who was responsible for stealing, he resumed his fighting position.

He was at least over 5 feet tall, his blond, unkempt hair stuck out in several directions, obscuring his ears; a mask covered his misty blue eyes. He wore armor, made of orange iron, but it was only visible because of the hand that still held out his long, dark katana. Normally, it would have been completely obscured beneath his flowing orange cloak. The girl took the opportunity and scrambled to her feet, running up and clinging to his arm.

"Are you okay, Sailor Io?" He asked emotionlessly. The girl-Sailor Io-nodded.

"Thank you, you saved me, Europa Knight." She replied.

"Why did you deny me of my prey?" The wolf hissed angrily. "I haven't eaten well in days!"

"Because," the Europa Knight replied, "I am a knight. And my duty is to protect Sailor Scouts. Sailor Io is a Sailor Scout."

"Yeah!" Sailor Io piped in, "Now, hand over the Crystal!"

"Never!" snarled the wolf.

"We'll see about that!" Io replied, taking a courageous step forward. The wolf crouched down into a hunting position.

A shower of golden crescent-moons with blade-like properties showered down on the wolf, Sailor Io, and Europa Knight.

Sailor Io yelped in surprise before ducking beneath the oncoming stream of crescent-moons. The Europa Knight acted quickly; holding his cloak in front of him to protect him. The crescent-moons futilely pressed into the cloak for a few moments before dissipating. The wolf, however, wasn't as fortunate as the two Sailor Soldiers. Its eyes widened as the crescent-moons hurled toward it, and had tried, unsuccessfully, to duck at the last minute; the disc-like moons hit him in the chest and threw him backwards.

"Bloody--" He spat before his body dissolved into mist.

"Io, Europa, I'm glad I finally found you." A new figure joined them on the roof, tall and slender, with strange green-blue eyes that stared down thoughtfully at her follow Sailor Scouts.

Sailor Io walked over the where the wolf-monster had been and picked up the gray stone. She sighed. "It's not the one, obviously. Anyway, why did you need to find us? We agreed to meet at 1:00 AM and its still 12:30."

"Did they find something?" Europa Knight asked hopefully.

"Yes, they did," The girl replied. "They want us there ASAP, so let's go!" Everyone nodded and together they leapt over the rooftops.

* * *

She typed briskly; her nimble fingers danced across the keyboard as she entered the code. Beside the keyboard, sat a cat. The cat was smoky gray with white paws and chest. His eyes were turquoise, and there was a golden crescent moon on his forehead that glinted strangely in the lamplight.

"I'm sure you've almost got it," The cat assured. The girl sighed and tossed her dark-blue hair over her shoulder.

"I'm finally done," She announced happily.

"We're here!" A newcomer called, pushing open the door and walking into the small room, followed by several other people. "Did you finish?" The girl nodded and turned to the computer.

"I've found a way to track the crystals," She explained.

"Does that mean we don't have to search any more?" Someone asked hopefully. The girl shook her head.

"No, as we all know, the Crystals are sealed within people. They're impossible to identify as long as they're within someone. But, when a Crystal isn't within someone, it's rather easy to find," She explained briskly. "It emits so much power anyone could find it. And I've found one."

"Where is it?"

"Tokyo, Japan." She replied.

"That's so far away…" Someone commented.

"But there are ways to get there," She assured.

"And we'll do it!" Another person piped up. "Anything to keep the Crystals from falling into their hands!" Everyone smiled and nodded in agreement.

"You know," The cat pointed out. "If we've managed to track the Crystal, they probably have to. And if they find it first…"

"Don't worry, they won't! We'll do anything to keep that from happening."

"We won't let them get the Crystals!" Someone else agreed.

"We'll fight to the very end,"

"Even if it means death," Another one finished.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. I assure you it becomes more interesting later! Sorry it's so long, I got carried away. Anyway, R&R!


	2. Another Battle Begins! And You Are?

**Author Notes: **Well, I got three reviews for the first chapter! That's the most I've ever gotten for one chapter! Besides, many hits and alerts -. Thanks to all!

**Disclaimer**: Nope, Sailor Moon ain't mine. Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adapation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway.

However, the Moon Scouts, Villains, plotline, and Fan-Fiction are MINE! And if you steal them……I'll through my computer at you.

* * *

Someone was calling.

"Serenity,"

The fog from the sea rose up, covering the dirt-path that led back to the Moon Kingdom. Still, Princess Serenity could make out the dark silhouette of a figure moving toward her.

"Serenity…"

Serenity forced herself to look away from the oncoming figure. Instead, she looked over the cliff. The cliff loomed ominously beneath her; Serenity had been afraid of it since she was just a little girl. And now, as she watched the water's woeful swirling, she could barely move.

"Serenity…Help me!" Serenity looked down toward the figure. Still, the fog hid her, but she did not need to see her to know she was in grave danger. Quickly, Serenity moved forward, the grotesque feeling of black mud lapping her heels. She felt the ground become softer, her feet sinking deeper into the black mud as she tried, unsuccessfully, to move forward. Looking down in alarm, Serenity saw that the mud had form strange, black hands that reached up and pulled her ankles downward.

All around her, hands rose up from the mud, old, covered in bruises and sores, as well as decaying and reached toward the Princess. A chorus of moans rose up from the depths of the ground as Serenity was pulled downward. "Give us…The Silver Crystal…"

* * *

**BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal**

**Episode One:**

"**Another Battle Begins! And You Are?" **

* * *

Serena Tsukino woke with a jump. What kind of a nightmare was that? She shivered. It didn't seem like a dream at all, more realistic, like photos in a photo-album. But it was just a dream, nothing of importance, she decided.

Serena yawned lazily as she got up. Already, safe for the creepy dream, this day was turning out better than normal. For starts, Luna wasn't nagging her about sleeping in or Scout business. Serena could tell today was special. Excitedly thinking ahead, she peeled off her pajamas and took a shower, brushing her long, blond hair with a pink hairbrush. With all this finished, she glanced nonchalantly at the clock. School start at 8:00, and it was 7:45 right now.

A piercing cry broke the quite atmosphere. Luna sighed; it seemed the Moon Princess had finally woken up.

"Luna!" Serena cried from the depths of her closet. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I did," Luna sighed in reply. "17 times. Each time you said you were getting up right away."

"And you believed me?" Serena called, struggling to brush her teeth and pull on her shoes at the same time.

"Of course I believed you Serena, you're a responsible young girl!" Luna replied, sounding rather annoyed. Of course she didn't believe her, Serena Tsukino was, after all, the world's largest klutz. But of course she had come far from when Luna had first met the crybaby. She was stronger now, the Champion of Justice, Sailor Moon! Defending Earth from all evil invaders, ones from their galaxy and others. Her identity was safe too, it was hard for even Luna to believe the klutzy crybaby Serena was the Princess of the Moon.

* * *

Serena ran down the streets like lightening, her feet pounded on the pavement. She breathed a sigh of relief. She still had 15 minutes to get to school, she could make it in plenty of time if she ran fast enough. Serena smiled at the thought of this; it would be the first time in two months she had made it on time! This day _was_ turning out better than usual.

Without slowing, Serena rushed around a corner and ran into someone, knocking them both down. The person Serena had knocked over sat up and rubbed her head. She was blnd, her hair tied back in two pigtails, and her eyes were a mix between deep blue and lime green. Her cloths were immediately recognizable as the Crossroads Jr. High uniform, from the blue, flowing skirt, to the white shirt. She seemed very depressed. Their bags both slid across the side walk, contents spilling out over the pavement.

"I'm sorry," Serena apologized repeatedly, helping the girl gather her stuff, as well as gathering he own. "I wasn't paying attention and-"

"It's alright," The girl assured. "I wasn't paying attention either." After stating this, she glanced down at her watch and yelped.

"Oh no! I'm sorry-I have to go!" She cried, shoving her belongings into her bag. "Bye!" She called over her shoulder as she sprinted down the street.

Serena followed her lead, hurrying to push all her items into her own bag. When the last item had been shoved forcefully in, she stood and prepared to take off when something caught her eye.

It was a floppy disk. It wasn't Serena's- so it had to belong to the other girl. She could give it back if she ever saw her again. Serena picked it up and examined the disk carefully. It, like most floppy disks, was square-shaped, but unlike most disks, it was made of sparkling crystal. The thing that Serena found most interesting about the disk was that, painted in bright, glittering gold, was a Crescent moon. The Royal Family's mark.

Serena arrived at school on time, surprising everyone. When Ms. Haruna asked her if she was sick, she just smiled and shook her head. 15 minutes had been enough time. Still, throughout the day, Serena felt uneasy. The Crescent Moon was, undeniably, the same moon the Monarchs of the Moon Kingdom wore. What was that girl doing with it? Maybe it was just for decoration, Serena decided, but she doubted it. There was something about her that seemed familiar; even dark.

* * *

For the first time ever, Larken Taylor was dreading the lunch bell. How was she supposed to admit to her friends that she had lost the disk? It contained all of their hard work to locate the Moon Crystals, and it was gone now. Larken could already see the disappointment painted on their faces.

Sighing, Larken hid under the shade of an oak tree for lunch and looked at the goodies she had been prepared. It seemed today, her friend had gone to major trouble over her meal. Everything was gourmet and exotic, it made Larken's taste bud's tingle as she devoured every last bit. So far, none of her friends had come running up to her. Larken was glad; she wanted to be alone for a little while. After all, adjusting to a new school was hard enough without having to admit the disk was gone.

Larken took a deep breath. The thought of the lost disk kept haunting her. She and the others had finally found a way to locate the Silver Moon Crystal, and she had blown it. _We'll find the Moon Crystals anyway,_ She assured herself._ The Cosmic Crystal will be ours!_

* * *

The sun shone through an expanse of white clouds. A beautiful, sunny day. And finally, there was no negative force trying to disrupt the sunny day. No more evil queens or crazy sciences to deal with. Finally, Serena was free to enjoy the day without worrying about the world plummeting into darkness. She had even solved the disk problem. She'd just ask Amy to run it through her computer and see what came up. What's the worst it could be? The girl's diary?

Yawning, Serena looked around. Amy and Lita were no where in sight, Melvin and Molly were sitting on a bench on the other side of the schoolyard, and a few feet away, a girl was quietly eating her lunch under the shade of an oak tree. She seemed rather depressed and didn't seem native. Serena examined her farther. She was a few inches shorter than she was, and had lovely blond hair tied in pigtails. Her eyes were misty blue, with hints of lime green. Serena immediately recognized her. The girl from this morning.

Serena looked down at the disk, clenched tightly in her hand. Should she return it? Then she'd never no why the Royal Family's mark was painted on it. But then it didn't belong to Serena, so she shouldn't have it. And the girl did seem depressed. Maybe it was because she lost the disk. Either way, Serena decided to talk to her. She seemed lonely, and Serena had nothing better to do until Amy and Lita came outside.

Quickly, Serena ran up in front of the girl. "Hi," She said energetically, "Mind if I sit next to you?" Without waiting for a response, Serena sat down happily next to the girl. "I thought you might like some company. You seemed pretty upset."

"Upset?" She responded, a bit confused. She had to stifle a gasp of the memory of the disk flooding into her mind. "Oh, right. I lost my friends disk, and I think she might be angry about it…"

"Are you waiting for your friend?" Serena asked.

"No," She replied. "I'm alone." Maybe eating with Serena would keep the others away, she reasoned.

"Well, my name's Serena Tsukino." Serena introduced.

"I'm Larken Taylor."

"Larken, are you from around here?" Serena asked.

Larken shook her head. "No, my father's in the Military and got transferred here along with some of my other frinds. I'm from America."

"Well, Larken, it's nice to meet you." Serena said happily, pulling out her lunch box. By fifteen minutes, Serena had invited Larken to a movie after school. Larken agreed, even if being accepted by a stranger was suspicious, Larken couldn't help but feel her life was finally, finally turning up.

Of course, that was when her friend walked up.

"Larken," She called, waving her hand. "Sheesh, I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Excuse me," Shere asked cautiously. "Do you know Larken?"

"Yes, actually, I'm her best friend. We were palling on going shopping after school," She said cheerfully. "We were going to eat lunch together to, but I couldn't find her. So I've been looking for her all this time."

"You're welcoming to join us," Serena said as she and Larken moved apart to make room for her.

"Thanks but no thanks," She said politely. They did, after all, need to discuss their mission. "actually, we were going to meet up with some of our others friends. We arranged it this morning."

Serena frowned. Larken had looked very upset this morning even before she lost her disk-perhaps it wasn't about the disk, maybe she was sad because this girl was harassing her. "But Larken looked very upset this morning. Are you sure she wants to eat with you? She wasn't looking for you, so maybe she was trying to get away from you."

The girl glared at Serena with a look that could kill. Serena took this moment to fully examine her. She was tall-taller than Larken at least- and had blond hari that extended just past her shoulders. Her eyes were hazel, and she too wore a Corsswords uniform. Larken quickly piped upto avoid any conflict between her two friends.

"No, Emily wasn't harassing me. She's my friend, she's here from America too. I really did lose something this morning. Sorry Serena, I have to go, I'll see you after school though." She gave a weak smile before the gilrl-Emily- grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.

"Serena," Amy called as she walked up. Serena smiled at the sight of her brainy, blue-haired fiend. "What was that about?"

"Oh, that was Larken and, uh, Emily. I'll tell you about it later, Anyway, Amy, I have a favor to ask," The Moon Princess grinned deiously and produced the crystal disk.

"Serena, what's this?" Amy asked, her deep blue eyes surveying the disk carefully.

"It fell out of Larken's bag this morning-and it's got the Royal Family's mark on it- Amy, could you please run it through you computer and see what's on it? Please?"

Amy was about to tell Serena how wrong snooping was when she too noticed the Moon Kingdom's mark on the disk Curiosity overtook the young Mercurian an dshe produced her Miniature Super Computer. It was small and blue, with the symbol of Mercury painted in gold on the top. As Amy slipped the disk in the computer, she remembered when she had first received it. Luna had given her the computer shortly after sh became a Sailor Scout. It had served her and the others well, for there were times when it was up to Amy to discover the neemy's weakness. And now, she was using it to invade another girl's private information.

Even on Sailor Mercury's Super Computer, the disk still took awhile to load. When it was complete, Amy frowned.

"What does it say?" Serena asked, peeking over her shoulder.

"It's password protected, I can't get on it," Amy sighed.

"Can't you hack it?" Serena asked, sounding disappointed.

Amy shook her head. "No, but I know what the title is."

"What?"

"The Search for the Silver Crystal. Serena, who was that person?"

"L-Larken…" Serena replied, feeling confustion wash over her. "Why?"

"Because," Amy explained. "She's after the Silver Crystal. Serena, Larken is the enemy."

"No she's not!" Serena protested. "The disk wasn't hers! I was her friends…and we don't have any more enemies!"

Amy sighed. "I'm sorry Serena, but that girl is the new enemy. She had the disk, didn't she?"

"Yes."

"And why would they let her hace the disk if she wasn't one of them?"

"Because they…they…truster her." Serena trailed off. Amy was right. Why would they trust her is she wasn't working form them?

"I'm sorry Serena," Amy Amy sighed. "I know she's your friend, but you need to stay away from her. "She – and whoever she's working for – is after the Silver Crystal. And that means we've got a whole new battle in front of us."

* * *

The afternoon was rainy. Luna hated rain. It made her black fur clump and often led to her being the victim of deeper-than-they-look puddles. Luna was careful to avoid any puddles as she padded down the streets of Tokyo. It seemed Luna wasn't the only one who disliked rain. Most of the other people had cleared the streets too, leaving only a few people running down the road. Serena had to be among them.

She hadn't come home that afternoon, this worried Luna. Usually, Serena was home and reading comics by 3:30. What was different about today? Plus, Serena had forgotten her Cosmic Heart Compact. This made Luna angry, not worried. That klutz had forgotten her transformation devise again, what would she do it someone needed Sailor Moon? Sure, all had been peaceful since they defeated Mistress 9, but you could never be sure. Luna had been prepared to chew Serena's ear off for her clumsiness when she got home, but when she never came the cat became worried.

So, here Luna was, trailing through Toyo with Serena's brooch in her mouth in pursue of the Moon Princess. In didn't take too long to find her, after all, Serena's hairstyle was recognizable from miles away. Surprisingly, Amy and Lita weren't with her, she was alone, walking slowly down the wet sidewalk. Her lake blue eyes were focused n the ground, she walked slowly, lost in thought, and was going to opposite direction of home. Luna ran after her, meowing loudlyas she darted across the streets. Finally, Serena halted, allowing Luna to run up to her heels.

"Serena," Luna panted, dropping her brooch on the ground. "You forgot it again." She didn't speak in an angry tone, more understanding, she could tell the Moon Princess was upset, and knew not why.

Serena sighed and retrieved her heart-shaped brooch. "Hi Luna," She said quietly. "I was just about to meet Larken- Our new enemy- at the movies."

Within five minutes, Serena had explained to Luna about Larken and the disk and what Amy had said. After she finished explaining Luna looked thoughtfully down the street.

"Well Serena, I think you should listen to Amy and stay away from Larken. And as for the disk – keep it. We may be able to find some useful information on our new enemy from it." Luna advised.

"But Luna, Larken is my friend! I can't just abandon her!" Serena protested. "I don't think she's evil, and I don't think her friend Emily is either! I think they're just…just…"

Luna sighed. "Serena, I'm sorry. I know you don't want to think they're the enemy, but still. The proof is undeniable and-"

"It's not undeniable!" Serena protested. "I'll prove to you that Larken's not the enemy! In fact, I'm meeting her at the movies right now!" Serena began to march angrily across the street. Luna was about to run after her, when a piercing cry disrupted the sound of the rainfall.

"Someone's in trouble!" Luna hissed. "Serena, transform!"

The Moon Princess nodded and held up her brooch. "Moon Cosmic Power!" She screeched. Ribbons surrounded Serena and wrapped themselves around her. A bright flash of light ended the transformation, and when the light had died down, Sailor Moon was left standing triumphantly.

"Well then," Luna said to Sailor Moon. "Let's go."

* * *

Sailor Moon tried to make her way to the fight scene as inconspicuous as possible. Unfortunately, that didn't work well. Many people looked up and cried in joy at the sight of Sailor Moon; others ran, figuring it there was a Sailor Scout, there was troubpe not far behind.

When they finally reached the fight scene, the rain had picked up immensely and fog had surfaced as well. The scream had come from the park, and the screamer was now laying on the ground, either dead or unconscious. Sailor Moon focused on the second chose. Above him, stood a women with a look of pure disgust painted on her ghostly-pale face. She was tall and wore a long, flowing purple dress. Her hair was black and silky, her eyes dark with hints of evil creeping through the sides. She wasn't paying attention to the newcomer, Sailor Moon deicided to use this to her advantage.

She threw up her right arm and the Spiral Heart Moon Rod appeared in it. Sailor Moon pointed it toward the girl with full purpose and shouted, _"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!" _A furry of hearts shot out of the scepter, carried by a spiral of whirlwind and toward the girl, who didn't even other looking up.

The hearts froze. Sailor Moon frowned. They press futilely forward for a moment, before disappearing completely. The girl looked up toward her unwanted guest and frowned.

"Do you mind? I was trying to steal this person's Moon Crystal, and I'd rather not be interrupted."

"Who are you?" Sailor Moon sked fiercely, still pointing her scepter at the girl.

"Thalia," She responded. "The most beautiful girl in the world! And you are?"

"The Champion of Love and Justice, Sailor Moon!" Sailor Moon called, twirling her scepter. "And on behalf of the Moon, I'll punish you!"

Thalia frowned. "Sailor Moon? You're just another one of those pathetic Moon Scouts aren't you?" She asked.

Sailor Moon's triumphant look was replaced by one of confusion. What were the Moon Scouts? Luna stepped forward. "Sailor Moon is the leader of the Sailor Scouts." Luna meowed proudly.

"Sailor Scouts?" Thalia repeated. "The Soldiers of Planets? They're here?" Thalia's face frew paler than it already was, but then brightened again. "Oh well, I'm sure they're just as weak as the Moon Scouts, if not weaker." She assured, more talking to herself than luna and Sailor Moon.

"Now, where was I," She continued. "Oh, that's right. Destroying you." She turned toward Saior Moon happily. "Say Bye-bye Sailor Moon!" She cupped her hands together and summoned up energy. Luna croucned down into a hunters crouch and Sailor Moonprepared herself fro attack.

Purple light leaked through the cracks in hre fingers and coiled around her hand. Finally, Thalia released the energy and shot a ball of swirling, purple mass toward Sailor Moon. Black lightening swirled around the mass and it moved quickly, barely giving sdailor Moon time to dodge. The mass rammed into a tree, engulging it completely in black lightening. When the lightening died down, only a few ashers were left.

"That's what you're going to look like when I'm done with you!" Thalia shouted, cupping her hands again.

"Sailor moon, stop her!" Luna cried, bracing herself. Sailor Moon nodded and held her scepter out in front of her.

_"Moon Spiral Heart Attack!" _She called, another furry of hearts shooting from the scepter, only to be destroyed by whatever basrrier Thalia had created to protect herself. Sailor Moon gasped. Thalia grinned devisously and prepared to launch another attack.

"_Luna Shimmering Crescent Cascade!" _A shrill voice called. Sailor Moon looked up, only to yelp and duck as a shower of golden crescent moons rained down from a tree and flew toward Thalia. Thalia grinned and crossed her arms over her chest proudly as the crescent moons clashed with her barrier. They pressed against it for a few moments, slowly moving forward. Thalia's face went from triumphant to wrroy, and she only had time to duck unter the stream of oncoming crescent moons as her barrier shattered into thousands of invisible pieces.

"Who's there?" Thalia cried out in anger. A slender figure jumped down from the trees and in between Sailor Moon and Thalia.

A white body suited hugged her tall and slender body, she wore a dark gray skirt that swayed gently in the wind. On her chest was a pale yellow bow, and another one on the back of her skirt. Her boots were knee length, the same shade of gray as her skirt, with a silverrim around the top. White gloves that ended in stripes of silver fabric covered her arms, and a golden tiara graced her heand. A smokey gemstone engraved in the center. The bow on her chest held a locket very smilair to Sailor Moon's first one, and like Sailor Moon, she had golden-crescent moons earrings, and a choker with a crescent moon in the center. Er hair was blond, and tied back in two pigtails, her eyes a miz between hazed blue and lime green. She had a look of pure triumph across her face. Beside her, a cat stood proudly. He was sokey gray, thogh his paws and chest were white like snow. Luna looked up curiously when she saw the golden crescent moon on his forhead, glinting strangely in the rain.

"Representing the Moon of Light and Love, Sailor Luna!" She called.

"So, you've come here too," Thalia hissed. "I guess that makes it more convenient to get ride of you!" Thalia raised her hands abover her head and purple mists emerged from her fingertips, coiling together to create a large, purple cloud. Sailor Moon quickly prepared to jump out of the waaay should she be the target.

Sailor Luna scolwed and pointed toward Thalia. _"Silver Moonbeam Blaster!" _A silver energy beam shot out from her extended finger and charged toward Thalia. Thalia, who was completely absorbed in her own attack, failed to notice the silver beam and looked up too late.

The beam struck her in the face, exploding into a blind silver light. Sailor Moon shielded her eyes, only looking again when the light had dimmed. Thalia was glaring at Sailor Luna with a look that could bring worse than death. Her hand was covering part of her face, Sailor Moon could see strange, violet blood leaking out from her fingers.

"I'll get you!" She cried angrily, before teleporting away.

Sailor Luna smiled triumphantly and walked over to where the boy lay. She picked up something beside him- it looked like a stone- and shook her head. "It's not the one," She told the cat, who nodded sadly. Sailor Luna held it over him for aminute before it disappeared back into his body. She tehn turned to Sailor Moon.

"You have the Silver Moon Crystal," She said fiercely. "Hand it over."

"What" Sailor Moon asked. Silver Moon cRystal….did they mean the Silver Crystal?

"You heard my," The scout said. "Give me the Silver Moon Crystal!"

"The Silver Crystal belongs to Sailor Moon," Lua meowed, sounding confused herself. "What makes you think it's yors?"

"You should know," The other cat meowed fiercely. Luna shook her head.

"I have no more idea than you, Sailor Moon." She sighed.

"Give me the Crystal!" Sailor Luna said irritably. "Or I'll make you give it to me!"

"The Silver Crystal belongs to me!" Sailor Moon defended. "It's mine!"

"No, it belongs to Sailor Luna, for she is the heir to the Lunar Kingdom!" The cat insisted. Angrily.

"Apollo, we don't have time for this," Sailor Luna sighed. "The others are expecting us to meet hem soon." She turned back to Sailor Moon. "Don't think this is over. The Silver Moon Crystal is mine. I'll be back for it!"

Quickly, she and the cat disappeared into the trees, leaving Luna and Sailor Moon alone in the rain.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Notes…2: **Yeah! The second chapter is DONE! Took long enough. Rah Rah Rah! Thanks to my reviewers! I love all three of you! Hugs


	3. Part 1: Twin Trouble, Friends or Foes?

**Author's Notes: **Hello all! I know, this chapter is WAY over due. Oh well. Anyway, one of the characters is based on my top reviewer; let's see if anyone (besides her) can guess who it is! And Larken is based on, well, Larken! Emily is based on me, and our two twins are based on no one.

**Disclaimer: **I do believe I covered this in chapter one…oh well, I'll do it again. Unfortunately, Sailor Moon ain't mine. The Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adaptation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway. I don't own Larken or Stacey either. They own themselves.

However, I own the Villains, Plotline, Moon Scouts, Fan-fiction and any other unfamiliar characters. And if you steal them…I'll throw my desk at you.

* * *

Artemis narrowed his eyes as his intense stare rested without wavering on Mina. Mina returned the cold gaze. Moments past before Mina blinked. 

"I win!" Artemis proclaimed, yawning and stretching quite pleased with himself. Mina pouted and stood, whipping around to face her mirror.

"I should know better than to have a staring contest with a talking cat!" Mina grumbled, fixing the red bow in her long, blond hair.

"Anyway Mina, we have more important things to worry about then losing staring contests," Artemis meowed with a grin. "Like yesterday, when Serena was attack by that monster-"

"Monster?" Mina called out so abruptly it caused Artemis to jump. "What do you mean 'Monster'? We're all done fighting, remember?"

Artemis sighed. He should have known this was coming. "Yes, we did defeat Mistress 9, but now this new enemy has appeared. And a new Sailor Scout too."

"New Scout? But there are no planets left! What's her name anyway?" Mina questioned.

"Her name," Artemis continued. "Is Sailor Luna."

"Luna like the cat?" Mina repeated. Artemis nodded.

"Luna," Mina pondered. "Is there a planet or something called Luna?"

Artemis shrugged his furry shoulders. "I don't know. But I know who would." A devilish grin grew on Mina's face.

"Amy," They said simultaneously.

* * *

**BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal**

**Episode Two:**

"**Twin Trouble, Friends or Foes?"**

* * *

A shrill beeping sound broke the quite environment of the Anderson residence. Amy sighed and surrendered her pen to the table. So much for studying. The teenager picked up her communicator and said a timid "hello." 

"Hey Amy," Mina's cheerfully voice echoed through the room. "Do you know of a planet or comet or whatever called 'Luna'?"

"Of course," Amy replied. "'Luna' is what the Roman's called Earth's moon, as well as the Latin name for the moon. So basically, Luna is another name for The Moon."

"Uh…thanks, Amy." Mina looked up at Artemis. "But why would there be a Sailor Luna? There's already a Scout for Earth's moon, Sailor Moon."

"Has something happened?" Amy's voice resounded from the communicator.

"There's a new Sailor Scout," Mina explained. "Called Sailor Luna. Serena saw her yesterday."

A pause pasted between the two Sailor Scouts before Amy spoke again. "Well, I'll see what I can dig up on this 'Sailor Luna' and get back to you later, alright?"

"Yeah," Mina agreed, though she sounded unconvinced. "I've got to go. Bye Amy!" The communicator's screen dimmed as Mina finished her message.

Amy sighed and turned her homework. She wasn't surprised to hear about the attack yesterday. She had expected it ever since Serena had showed her that disk. And what annoyed her even more was that, despite her constant warnings, Serena showed no acknowledgement that Larken was her enemy. She sat with her, and her friend Emily, at lunch, and went with them after school. The girls had formed a kind of bound, or at least, that's what Serena thought. Even the one who Serena had had a fight with when they met was now another of her friends. Amy knew the second these girls found out Serena had the Silver Crystal they wouldn't be friendly any more.

Still, Amy knew no matter how hard she tried, Serena wouldn't be convinced. So she'd just have to make extra care to protect the Moon Princess. Sighing again, Amy stood. Her computer class started in a few minutes, and she didn't want to be late.

* * *

Stacey Johnson bit her lower lip, very near to drawing blood, in annoyance. She hated her parents. She hated her new school. She hated the kids in it. While she was at it, she might as well hate the whole planet too. 

"Ms. Johnson, welcome to Crystal Computer School. I am the principal here, Mr. Minoru." The man who entered the cramped office introduced. Stacey stood, accepting his hand and shaking it gently.

Stacey fought a scowl. The man was using English with her. She DID know Japanese. She'd been forced to learn it ever since her parents divorced and her father moved to Japan. If she wasn't so shy, she might have said something to him.

Stacey was brought back to reality as she realized the man had continued talking.

"I hope you find your class acceptable. It may be more difficult than you were used to from your American schooling, but you seem to be a bright young lady. I'm sure you'll do fine. Would you like me to assign a guide to help you find your way around?"

"No, sir, I'm sure I can manage." she replied in flawless Japanese. He seemed thrown a bit off step. He then let loose a laugh.

"You'll do fine, Ms. Johnson." he ensured.

* * *

Raye was tense. 

She wasn't usually tense during school. She passed her classes without paying much attention at all, and often let her mind wander.

But today was different. Seated ahead of her was a girl with hair as black as a raven's wing tied up miko-style giving off a particular aura. _Strange…why haven't I noticed that before? _Raye thought as the teacher droned on.

_Why are you trying to read my thoughts?_ A sliced through Raye's head, causing her to jump up, violet eyes wide, and knock a book from her desk that clattered to the floor. The teacher turned around and placed her over-large hands on her hips. "Ms. Hino, are you done disrupting the class?"

"Yes Yori-Sensei. I'm terribly sorry." Raye apologized, bowing and sitting. A chorus of giggles rose up from the students. Yori-Sensei scowled, but continued with the lesson.

_Nice job disrupting the class. Very smooth. _The girl's thoughts echoed through her mind and she let lose a small giggle.

_You startled me. _Raye thought back. _Anyway, where'd you learn this?_

_Telepathy? I've had it all my life. So does my brother, but since this is an all-girls school, he doesn't go here. _She replied in thought, scribbling down some notes with a pen.

_What's your name? _

_Phoebe. _She though back cheerfully. _And yours? _

_Raye. _Raye told her mentally. She filed the name 'Phoebe'. It seemed familiar, but she couldn't place it. The bell ended abruptly and Raye hurried to gather her papers and books, then looked up for Phoebe.

The girl was gone.

* * *

It had been a long day, Stacey decided as she trudged home. Too long for her liking. She was looking forward to getting home to her father. Her parents had divorced a couple months ago, and she missed him immensely. Plus, visiting him gave her a chance to complete her mission. 

"Hey, wait up!" Someone called. Stacey didn't know the voice; she chose to ignore the calls. Besides, they probably weren't for her.

"Hey, Stacey, wait up!" Stacey stopped in her tracks. That voice was familiar. She waited patiently for the group to catch up to her. Larken was in the lead, with Emily and another girl who Stacey didn't recognize close behind. She looked up at the unfamiliar face. The girl looked about there age, age with blond hair tied in pigtails with strange little buns at the top.

"Hello Larken. What's up?" She asked as cheerfully as possible, forcing a smile.

"We were going to the Crown Arcade. Want to come?" Larken asked happily.

"I'm sorry Larken, I can't. I've got so much homework." Stacey said, trying to sound disappointed but instead sounding a bit happy.

"Come on Stacey, you always get it done in 5 minutes anyway!" Emily persisted.

"I really want to get home," Stacey protested quietly. "I haven't seen my dad in a long time,"

"Alright," Larken sighed; defeated.

* * *

Amy stepped into the cool air-conditioned apartment building and pressed the "up" button by the elevator. As Amy entered, she looked up and selected the plastic button labeled number 3. The old doors moaned as they slowly began to close, and Amy noticed another girl running toward the elevator. Quickly, she pressed the 'open' button for her as she darted through the doors. 

"Thank you," She said happily.

"No problem," Amy responded, examining her. The girl was shorter than she was, and had long dark blue hair that extended down to the middle of her back. She wore a crosswords uniform, like Amy, and had deep, lovely blue eyes. Still, Amy had never seen her before.

"Do you live here?" Amy asked.

"My father does," She replied. "And I'm living with him right now. So yes. My name's Stacey."

"I'm Amy," Amy introduced. "Welcome to the neighborhood!"

Stacey smiled timidly. "Thanks."

The doors slid open and the two girls stepped out, chatting quietly as they made their way down the hall. Stacey stopped when she reached room 314.

"This is my room. It was nice meeting you Amy. Maybe I'll see you tomorrow?"

Amy smiled. "Yeah, maybe we could walk to school together."

* * *

"How was school Stacey?" Called the voice of her father as Stacey pushed open the door. 

"Fine," Stacey called back, dropping her shoes and school bag by the door and slipping into a pair of slippers. Stacey ventured into the kitchen, where she found her father and a woman she did not recognize.

"Hello," she greeted, bowing slightly. The woman smiled. She was tall with short dark hair and dark eyes. Stacey grabbed a soda from the refrigerator and took an empty seat at the table.

"Hello dear," She greeted in response. "So you're the famous Stacey?"

"Famous?" Stacey raised her eyebrows and looked toward her father.

"Your father's told me so much about you. He's very proud of having such a smart daughter." The woman explained. Stacey smiled, feeling her cheeks burn in embarrassment. The woman continued. "You must meet my daughter. She's about your age. Her name is Amy," The woman took a sip from her tea.

"Does she happen to have blue hair?" Stacey asked. The woman nodded. "Then we've already met in the elevator."

"That's wonderful. Maybe you two could walk to school together." She drank the last of her tea. "I must be going Katsuo. It was nice chatting with you, and meeting you Stacey. You're welcome to come over any time." She stood, and Stacey's father, Katsuo, walked her to the door.

* * *

The Cherry Hill Temple rarely got visitors past 5:00. This was because Chad's singing rehearsal started at 5:30, and everyone knew to be long gone when he started. Raye often barricaded herself in the fire room, enabling her to lose herself in the flames while Chad sang loudly and horribly. Most of the time, Chad's voice was so disrupting she couldn't focus and wasn't able to connect with the Great Fire. 

But today was different.

Raye was sure she could focus today, her will was strong enough. She was sure she'd find out more about the telepathic 'Phoebe.' It was mostly her particular aura that sparked Raye's interest. The aura gave off power similar to Sailor Moon's, and she had decided to investigate.

She sat on the kneeling pillow in front of the Great Fire as she did the proper hand movements. Then, the fire roared and allowed Raye access to Phoebe's mind.

* * *

The black-haired girl was sitting on a bench in the park. Beside her, a boy was standing. He was the tallest guy Raye had ever seen, and did not look Japanese at all. His skin was pale and his hair was black, he had broad shoulders and a muscular figure. Phoebe, however, was short and skimpy, almost sickly. The two made an odd couple. 

"I don't know Michael," Phoebe was saying, sounding very unsure. "Are you sure that's what the Great Fire told you?"

The boy- Michael- nodded. "Yeah Phoebe, I'm sure! And we've got to leave soon!"

Phoebe sighed. "I have homework. Are you sure it's tonight?"

"Positive!" Michael stated proudly. "Now come on Phoebe, let's go!" Phoebe sighed and stood, walking toward the setting sun with her brother.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Notes 2: **Yeah, I know, nothing really happened in this chapter. But it started, and you can tell where it's going, can't you? Good, 'cause I'm lost. Anyway, please Read and Review! Later!


	4. Part 2: Twin Trouble, Friends or Foes?

**Author's Notes: **Hello all! Long time no see, eh? Yes, I know, it's been like a month but alas, I have a very busy life. So, enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do believe I've covered this. Eh, I'll just do it again. Sadly, Sailor Moon I don't own. Nor do I own Spirited Away, which I saw last weekend. Oh, how I loved that movie! In fact, I have Haku trapped in my closet! MWAHAHAHA! Now, Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adapation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway.

However, the Moon Scouts, Villains, plotline, and Fan-Fiction are MINE! And if you steal them……I'll through my computer at you.

* * *

"Are you sure it's time, Michael?" Phoebe asked nervously, pulled her jacket over her shoulders. The air wasn't cold, but she shivered anyway. 

"I already told you, I'm sure," Michael replied. "Now, let's power up!"

* * *

**BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal**

**Episode 2**

"**Twin Trouble, Friends or Foes?"**

* * *

Raye snapped out of her trance, her violet eyes wide with shock and confusion. They were up to no good, Raye decided. She had become even more confused when the two transformed. Phoebe's cloths became those of a Sailor Scout, and the boy's outfit had become shining armor, with a cape to conceal it. She sighed as the fire began to crackle softly. Why, why had the fire cut her off right when she needed to see what happened? No matter, Raye decided, she could still discover what those mysterious twins were up too. 

Raye took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and tried to recall the vision. They had been in the park; Raye could easily make it there and cut them off. But still, there would be two of them and one of her. She'd just have to risk it, Raye decided.

* * *

The next morning, Serena was up and out before Luna. It was Saturday. The fact that Serena had risen before noon scared Luna immensely. She had mentioned her trouble sleeping because of a strange dream, but didn't think a nightmare would get her up before the black cat. 

Luna yawned and stretched, then began to groom her fur. As she did this, Luna glanced out the window and surveyed the sidewalk. It was still early, so no one was up or about yet, but she could see some people moving further down the road.

A flash of raven hair caught Luna's eyes. She padded closer toward the window and peered out, just as the raven-haired girl disappeared down an alleyway. Luna's eyes widened. Was that Raye? Only one way to find out.

Luna took of in a dead run toward where she'd seen Raye. The cat darted through people's legs, tail flying behind her like a cloak. Luna was where she saw Raye last now, the corner of the alley. She slid in.

A body, obviously female, lay on the ground. Her cloths were torn and shredded; her raven hair was blood-stained, and under her was a small puddle of blood. Her own, Luna presumed. The black cat padded up closer to the figure.

"Raye," Luna whispered. She groaned. "What happened to you Raye?" Luna gasped.

"No doctors, Grandpa can't afford it!" Raye managed.

"No doctors," Luna agreed. "Just wait here while I get Amy." But, Luna realized, just where could Raye go? _Serena, where'd you go? _Luna thought desperately, before racing toward Amy's apartment.

* * *

The demanding ringing of the phone sliced through Stacey's thoughts. She ignored it, but that didn't make the ringing go away. Finally, Stacey rose and picked up the phone. 

"Hello?" She called timidly.

No answer. "Hello?" She called again. This time, an answer came. It was muffled and weak, and sounded as though it was struggling to talk. The blue-haired girl frowned. The voice was drowned out by static. Stacey sighed and surrendered the phone to the receiver.

But of course, silence never lasted. Another sound rose up into the air, but this one wasn't like the ringing of the phone, it was a shrill beeping sound. Her communicator. Stacey picked up her the communicator with an expression of puzzlement painted on her face. It was shaped like a watch and was a pale blue. A golden moon was imprinted on it, as well as the sign of her Guardian Moon. She flipped it open.

"Hello?" Stacey called timidly into the communicator. It was Michael and Phoebe; she could see that by staring into the screen. But there was something different about them. They seemed weary and hurt; crimson blood streaked down Phoebe's hair and stained Michael's cloths.

"What happened to you too?" Stacey cried franticly. Then she noticed the details of their shredding clothing. "Oh no, you didn't! Not again! Please tell me you didn't!"

Phoebe nodded sadly. "I'm sorry Stacey. But we need you—and fast! Could you please come to the park?"

Stacey nodded and preceded to bite her lower lip. She hated blood. She hated conflict. But right now, her friends needed her. Phoebe smiled in thanks and bowed her head before the screen dimmed and she disappeared. Stacey sighed and took some bandages from a drawer in the kitchen.

She was going to need them.

* * *

Amy wiped the sweat off her forehead as she bandaged the last of Raye's wounds. "I'm afraid that's all I can do for you. If you'd let me take you to my mother-" 

"No!" Raye snapped quickly.

Amy sighed. "We could tell her you were mobbed. She'd treat you for free."

"I don't take charity," Raye replied angrily, sipping the tea Amy had made her.

"Fine, but what happened to you anyway?" Amy asked.

"Well," Raye began. "I got a vision from the Great Fire of these two people at the park, so I went to check it out. When I got there, they had opened this portal thing. I knew they were evil as soon as I saw it! So, I did the speech and everything, and then we got into a fight. They were so strong! They were going to beat me! But while we were fighting, these wolf things came out of the portal and attacked us. I managed to escape, but I'm not sure about the other two."

"Two?" Amy repeated curiously. Raye nodded.

"One was a girl, dressed in a Sailor Suit like us. The other was a boy that wore cloths like Tuxedo Mask, expect the colors were different and he didn't have a top hat. Amy, they're going to go back tonight! We've got to stop them!" Raye exclaimed wide-eyed.

"Now hold on," Luna meowed. The black she-cat had been quite during most of the discussion, but was now padding over to the two Sailors. "Raye, you were badly hurt by those Scouts and the monsters. We can't risk you getting hurt again."

"But Luna, we can't just let them get away with whatever they're doing! We've got to stop them!" Raye protested. "Besides, me wounds aren't that bad!"

Amy sighed. "Raye does have a point," Amy pointed out. "But so does Luna. Maybe we should bring the others and try to ambush them?" She suggested.

"It would take too long to get everybody here!" Raye snapped. The fiery priestess wasn't giving up easily, Amy could see. The blue-haired girl sighed.

"You said there were only two?"

"Yes," Raye repeated slowly, eyeing Amy with curiosity. "Why?"

Both Luna and Raye's eyes followed Amy as she stood. "We could probably take two of them on our own." Raye's eyes were clouded with triumph and Luna's widened in shock. The cat had thought of Amy as the smartest member of the team, surely this was a joke. But no, the look in Amy's eyes told Luna she was dead serious. What brought about this sudden change?

"Oh, thank you Amy!" Raye exclaimed. "I knew you'd understand! We just have to stop them!" Amy smiled and nodded, then reached in her skirt pocket and retrieved a small blue stick with a golden star perched on top. In the star, the symbol of Mercury was embedded. Raye produced a similar stick, except hers was red and bared the symbol of Mars.

Amy held her stick aloft. _"Mercury Star Power!" _Ribbons of shimmering blue were produced from the stick and wrapped around Amy like a snake coiling around its prey.

Raye followed Amy's act. _"Mars Star Power!" _Rings of blazing fire spiraled around the priestess, the warmth of the flames sending power through the Marian's veins. Raye felt no pain at all as the rings blazed by her wounds, instead she felt powerful, and was prepared at any second to leap into battle.

A brilliant flash of light ended the girl's transformations and left two Sailor Scouts standing triumphantly in the room.

Luna sighed. Clearly, she was out numbered. Still, she wasn't about to let her warriors go charging off into battle alone. "I'll call the others," Luna meowed. "I believe they're at the arcade. It could take them awhile to get here, but I'm sure they'll be helpful."

"Thanks Luna," Amy, or rather, Sailor Mercury said with a smile. "We'll head out to the park now."

* * *

Sailor Mars narrowed her eyes dangerously. It was, as any normal idiot was assume, a peaceful hour. The sun was slowly sinking down in the west, casting long shadows across the park. The first stars of night were beginning to shine down on Tokyo. A gentle brew blew across the park, ruffling the leaves of the trees the Scouts were hiding behind. However, Sailor Mars and Mercury were neither normal nor idiots. Mars was looking over the area carefully, her violet eyes soaking in every detail. Her fingers rested on her temples as she tried to locate any Negative Energy. Her violet eyes shot a gaze toward her companion. Sailor Mercury had her visor in place and was punching in a few keys on her Mini Computer. Her face molded into a frown as she examined the park. 

The sound of a breaking twig nearly caused both girls to jump. Immediately, their gazes fell toward the bushes, were three figures were stepping out into the park. The first two Mars recognized from early, the other was a complete stranger.

The first girl's skirt was bright, violent red; the bow on her chest was deep, vivid blue. Small boots the same tint of red as her skirt covered her shins, while long, elegant white gloves were worn on her arms. A golden tiara graced her pale forehead, and a red gemstone that Raye believed to be ruby was embedded in the center of it. A choker, blue like her bow, had a golden crescent moon centered on it that matched her moon-shaped earrings. The boy wore shining topaz armor and a dark cape. A white mask concealed his emerald eyes and he held a sword in front of him, revealing the red underside of his cape. Both were still injured from their previous fight. The other though, Mars had never seen before. She had a looked of uncertainty painted on her pale face, her dark blue hair matched her blue uniform, which had aquamarine bows and criss-cross roman sandals with straps that spiraled up to her knees. She wore similar jewelry to the other girl, gold crescent moon earrings and a choker. White gloves covered her thin arms and ended in three strips of blue fabric. The outfit was accented by her golden tiara, with a topaz encrusted in the center, and a blue brooch that sat on her front bow.

"I thought you said there were only two!" Mercury whispered worriedly.

"There were only two!" Mars protested. "I guess they got reinforcements!" Mercury proceeded to bit down her lower lip. Luna had attempted to call Serena and the others on their communicators, but they didn't answer. Luna assumed they were either at the movies or the arcade, so the black cat had run off to get them. Mercury knew it would be awhile for them to return, so they'd just have to do their best on there own for awhile.

The boy's lips moved, neither Mars nor Mercury could make out what he was saying, and he pulled out a black square with several buttons and a red orb on top and held it up. The red orb blinked and tiny dark particles began to emerge out of the air and mold together, creating a swirling mass of darkness. Mars' eyes widened.

"That's it!" She whispered loudly. "That's the portal! They were about to go in and I was trying to stop them! Then, all these wolf things came out and attacked both of us! We've got to stop it before it becomes any bigger and they go back to the Negaverse!" Mars said the last part with uncertainty, for she was not sure if it was the Negaverse they were fighting or a new force.

Mercury nodded and slightly raised her hands. "Let's take them by surprise," She whispered, then more loudly, _"Shine Aqua Illusion!" _Water spiraled up Mercury's body and gathered in her hands, then was shot itself at the target. The column of water collided with the boy's shoulders, causing him to slide across the ground and hit a tree behind him. Mars glared with disdain at his armor, which prevented any serve wounds. Immediately, he was on his feet again, holding his sword at the ready and glaring with malice at his attackers.

"Who are you?" The soldier in red spat.

"With the glory of the Planet of Fire, Mars, Sailor Mars!" Mars cried.

"With the wisdom of the Planet of Water, Mercury, Sailor Mercury!" Mercury added.

"We are the Sailor Scouts!" They said in unison.

The red scout's violet eyes widen for a moment, and then returned to normal size. "Planetary Soldiers?" She whispered to her companions. "Here?"

"We've introduced ourselves," Mars said coldly. "Do return the favor."

"Representing the Moon of Fire and Dignity, Sailor Phobos!" The girl in red cried.

"Representing the Moon of Fire and Honor, the Deimos Knight!" The boy called.

"Representing the Moon of Water and Wisdom, Sailor Icarus!" Shouted the blue scout.

"The Moon Scouts!" The cried as one. As soon as Mercury heard the name "Icarus," bells started ringing in her head. First off, that was the name of Daedalus' son in Greek Mythology. Second, Icarus wasn't a moon at all and third, Mercury could have sworn she had heard that name long before this event. "Icarus" seemed like a name from long ago.

"Icarus isn't a moon at all!" Mercury piped up. "It's a crosser asteroid of Mercury!"

"It was a moon in the Silver Millennium," Sailor Icarus replied, sounding almost nervous.

"Never mind that," Deimos Knight continued. "Why are you blocking our path?"

"Same reason you're trying to get into the Negaverse!" Mars snapped. Deimos Knight blinked behind his mask.

"We're not trying to go anywhere never the Negaverse; we're looking for the Dysnomia Kingdom!"

At this, Sailor Phobos elbowed him in the ribs. "They don't need to know that!" She hissed into his ear. She then turned her attention back to Sailor Mars and Sailor Mercury, eyes narrowing dangerously. "Stand aside,"

"Never," Mars replied.

"Then I'll make you stand aside! _Phobos Fire Snake!" _She cried, holding out her right arm. Fire, blazing hot, coiled out of her fingers and materialized into a huge snake. Immediately, smoke filled Mars' nostrils and spiraled up into the air. Mars could hardly see through it.

"MARS GET OUT OF THE WAY!" Mercury's shrill voice cut through the smoke. Mars turned to see where her friend was but instead say the menacing, burning face of Sailor Phobos' attack slam into her and send the Scout flying through the smoke-filled air. Mars' slightly-healed cuts opened up again and scarlet blood leaked onto her skin. She could feel immense heat against her arms, and didn't need to look to know that her gloves had been burned through. Mars felt herself stop suddenly and fell to the ground. Slightly opening her violet eyes, she saw a tree had stopped her from propelling farther into the park. She wasn't sure to be thankful or not. The fire-snake had dissolved into nothing more than smoke, and the smoke was gone now. She closed her eyes again and breathed a sigh of relief.

"_Deimos Fiery Downpour!" _Mars' eyes snapped open at the sound of the knight's attack. Quickly, she glanced around to find the oncoming attack but saw it nowhere. Only then did Sailor Mars think to look up. As she did, she saw thousands of tiny raindrops falling toward her. It took a moment for her brain to register that the raindrops were made of fire. Mars jammed her eyes shut and covered her head with her arms, preparing for impact.

"_Shine Aqua Illusion!" _Sailor Mercury shouted as she raised her hands above her head. Her column of icy cold water met with the flaming raindrops mid-flight, extinguishing them. "If you think you can hurt my friend then you're wrong!" Mercury cried.

Sailor Phobos and Deimos Knight frowned, but Sailor Icarus looked almost relieved. It must be a trick of the light, Mercury thought, for these Moon Scouts were vicious and blood hungry. Mercury dared not look away from the Moon Scouts, but glanced toward the forming portal. The swirling mass of black was completely materialized.

"Sailor Mercury, Sailor Mars!" A familiar voice called out. Everyone turned around to see four new figures running toward them. The first was a tiny, black cat with a golden crescent moon on its forehead that was glistening strangely in the fading sunlight. The other three wore Sailor Suits in different colors, and one held a scepter in one hand.

"Sailor Moon, Sailor Venus, Sailor Jupiter!" Mercury cried out in relief as her friends reached them. Sailor Moon smiled and winked and then turned toward the other scouts.

"How dare you attack Sailor Mars! On behave of the Moon, I'll punish you!" She cried, twirling her scepter and pointing it at them.

Sailor Phobos was about to snap back, but Deimos Knight placed a hand on her shoulder. "This is a fight when cannot win, Phobos." He sighed, and looked her directly in the eye. Mars knew that look anywhere-they were communicating using telepathy. The message lasted only a second- then they turned back to face the Sailor Scouts. Deimos Knight held up the black square again, the one he had used to open the portal, and pressed a button. The portal began to break apart into tiny chunks of dark, swirling mass that dissolve into nothingness.

"Venus," Mercury whispered to the Yellow Scout. "See that thing in his hand? Can you get it from him?"

Sailor Venus glanced toward Deimos Knight and nodded. She raised her chain high into the air, its tiny golden hearts glinting in the sunlight. _"Venus Love Chain Encircle!" _Venus cried, flinging the chain toward him. It spiraled through the air before making contact with the remote Deimos Knight held. A look of shock appeared on the knight's face as Venus pried the remote away from his gloved hands.

"I'm afraid you won't be using this again!" Venus called, waving the remote over her head.

"Give that back!" Sailor Phobos cried out in rage, running toward them, but Deimos Knight held her back by her arm.

"This is a battle we cannot win," He whispered. "Let it go. We can make another one."

Phobos sighed, defeated, then turned back to the Sailor Scouts. "Don't think you've won! We'll be back! And next time, you won't be so lucky." The red scout then turned and jumped off into the trees, followed by the knight. Sailor Icarus bit her lip, glancing from where Phobos and Deimos had gone, and where the Sailor Scouts where. Mercury paid no attention to this, however. She was kneeling next to Sailor Mars, checking her vital signs. She only looked up when she heard the grass crunching under Icarus' feet and Venus and Jupiter's snarls.

"What do you want?" It was Jupiter's voice. Mercury turned to see what the commotion was. Sailor Icarus was walking toward them casually; she did not give off an impression of strength at all, and didn't seem aggressive either.

"I want to help you," She replied calmly, her blue eyes resting on the wounded Sailor Mars.

"Help? After what you did to Mars, I don't think so!" Jupiter shot back. She placed her hands together, as if in prayer, and the golden lightening rod rose from her tiara, sparkling with thunder and lightening.

"Jupiter, stop!" Sailor Moon called out to her friend. The green scout didn't back down.

"Please," Icarus said, practically begging. "I want to help you. I can heal her."

"Why should we trust you?" Venus questioned.

"I can help you," She responded.

"Hardly a reason," Jupiter snarled.

"Jupiter, Venus, please!" Sailor Moon cried out, rushing toward her friends. "Give her a chance. It wasn't her who attacked Mars, it was those other two!"

"She says see can help," Mercury added. "Give her a chance."

"Fine," Jupiter said reluctantly, moving aside so Sailor Icarus could pass. Icarus smiled in thanks to Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury, then moved slowly toward Sailor Mars. When about three feet away, she stopped and held both arms in front of her, palms pointed toward Sailor Mars.

"_Icarus Water Wings," _She said softly. Water spiraled out of Icarus' palms and slowly toward Sailor Mars. It twisted together into two, small wings of solid water. As Sailor Mars saw them coming, her violet eyes widen and she tried, unsuccessfully, to crawl away. The wings reached her and enveloped her in a veil of solid water. Mars shut her eyes, preparing for pain. When it wasn't delivered, she opened them again. All around her was water, water, water. Mars wondered if she had somehow fallen into a lake or the ocean, but then she managed to make out her surroundings. Beyond the water were the blurred figures of her friends, staring at her with curiosity and worry. The water wasn't still; it was circling Mars, passing over her body and soaking into her skin. As the water circled, Mars' wounds slowly began to heal, as did the rips and tears in her outfit. While the water passed, everything about Sailor Mars was made stronger; her body, her mind, her pride, her hope. Mars felt unstoppable. Once the last of Mars' wounds closed, the water fell to the ground, creating a large puddle that quickly dissolved.

"Mars! You're better!" Sailor Moon cried in joy. Sailor Mars nodded fiercely.

"Yes, I am. And I have you to thank," She turned toward Sailor Icarus and bowed her head in respect. "Thank you."

Icarus smiled and nodded. "It was my pleasure. But please—tell no one I have done this for you."

"Why not?" Mercury asked. "You saved her, you should be proud!"

"Please," Icarus begged. "Can we keep it our little secret?"

"Yes," Mars replied. "But first tell us what the Moon Crystals are." She added as she remembered the details of Sailor Moon's fight with Sailor Luna.

Icarus's smiled quickly molded into a frown and she shuffled her feet uncomfortably. "The Moon Crystals are pieces from the core of a Moon in the Sol System," She began. "Each one holds the power of a different moon. Long ago, a piece of core from each Moon was brought to the Lunar Kingdom, where they transformed into one crystal, called the Cosmic Moon Crystal. It was the most powerful talisman ever created in the Sol System. It provided not only Luna, but all the Moons with prosperity and power. The Sol System was untouchable! Then, the Dysnomia Kingdom started attacking the Moons of the Sol System. The Cosmic Crystal was used to lock the kingdom away. After that, the Moons broke the alliance, taking their piece of the Crystal back and thus, destroying the Cosmic Moon Crystal. With the Cosmic Crystal's threat gone, Queen Beryl of the Negaverse tried taking over the galaxy. Queen Serenity of Luna took care of her, but after that the Moon Crystals disappeared. My team and the Dysnomia Kingdom discovered the crystals are locked within people, and we've both begun searching for the true Moon Crystals so we can recover the Cosmic Moon Crystal."

With her story finished, Sailor Icarus took a deep breath. "So the Moon Crystals are pieces of core from a Moon in the Sol System and contain that moons powers?" Venus questioned. Icarus nodded.

"And together, the Moon Crystals form the Cosmic Moon Crystal, the most powerful talisman in the Sol System?" Mars asked. Once again, Icarus' reply was a nod.

"And you're after the Cosmic Crystal?" Jupiter concluded. Again, Icarus nodded.

"But why do you want it?" Venus asked. This time, the blue scout shook her head.

"I've already told you far too much." She replied.

"But that doesn't explain why Sailor Luna said she was the heir to the Moon Kingdom!" Sailor Moon blurted. All eyes shot toward her and a bright red blush rose into the Moon Princess's cheeks.

"Sailor Luna is the heir to the Lunar Kingdom," Icarus told her. "That is the truth. I must go now, please, tell no one about this."

Sailor Icarus turned away from them, the setting sun's light casting her long shadow across the park. As she walked away, she appeared to be a shadowy figure against blinding light, her blue hair flying behind her like a cape.

The Sailor Scouts were, once again, left alone to their thoughts.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Notes 2: **Yes, I know in the Manga there are already two Scouts name Sailor Phobos and Deimos. Deal with it! But, if you want, I could include them. Just asked me to, and I will. That is, if three people ask me to! I'm not going to do it just for one, sorry. And yes, I know Mercury and Venus have no moons. My solution to that is Crosser-Asteroids. I say, they were Moons in the Silver Millennium, but you'll find out about that later! Whoa, I've got a lot to say this time! Anyhow, thanks all for reading and please leave a review or two! Byes!


	5. Heart of Black, Thalia Strikes Back

**Author's Notes: **What's up, people? Yeah, I know it's been awhile since I updated but a lots been going on. So deal with it. I'd like to remind you that this takes place between Sailor Moon S and Sailor Moon SuperS. In case you didn't read the author's note in the last chapter, I know Venus and Mercury have no moons. My solution is using Crosser Asteroids. Okay, I'm down blabbing. Enjoy and review please!

**Disclaimer: **I think I've down this already. Eh, I'll just do it again. Sadly, Sailor Moon Ain't Mine. Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adaptation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway.

However, the Moon Scouts, Villains, plotline, and Fan-Fiction are MINE! And if you steal them……I'll through my printer at you.

* * *

The day was rainy. Dark clouds covered the large expanse of sky that usually glittered like an endless ocean, as well as the big bright disk that usually warmed the Earth. All that was in the sky now were dark clouds and rain descending down toward the surface. And it wasn't light rain either.

Rain came down in bathtubs; rivers were beginning to form on the streets and sidewalks. Rain could be heard pounding against the roof and streets. Wind could be heard howling loudly, causing trees and even buildings to sway back and forth. You would be- to say the least-drenched if dared ventured outside to day. Anyone with a goat's common sense would stay safely snug inside their homes.

Of course, not everyone was given the choice.

Larken watched the rain outside her window as it journeyed from the sky to the street and sighed. Her hair was down and covered her shoulders like a shawl. Her misty green-blue eyes were gazing outside thoughtfully, and her lips were shaped into a frown. Behind her, sat Emily. Her blond hair was tangled and dirty, the ends almost seemed brown. Her hazel eyes stared at her friend with wonder and worry, and beside her was a cat, gray as ash with paws white like snow. On the cat's forehead was the most peculiar thing, a golden crescent moon that seemed to glisten even in the dark. They were silent for a moment, before Larken spoke.

"It's raining," She said in a soft voice. "Thalia always strikes when it's raining."

Emily nodded. "Yeah, it's like a sign that she's coming. And it means we have another chance to get our hands on a Moon Crystal."

Larken nodded again, uninterested. She was tried of her mission. She was tried of searching for the Moon Crystals. She was tried of trying to get the Cosmic Crystal. She didn't want any of it, but she had to go through for her friends and for the universe. If the Dysnomia Kingdom discovered the Crystals first, nothing would remain. Sighing, Larken stood.

"You girls be careful," The cat cautioned.

"We will, Apollo, quite worrying." Emily assured. "We'll be back before 3 o'clock, just you watch!"

"Still," Apollo continued. "I want you to take Europa with you. You'll need all the power you can get if you do find a Moon Crystal."

Emily rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll call James, just quite worrying. Nothing bad is going to happen." Larken watched as Emily produced a silver and blue watch and flipped it open. She wondered how her friend could be so positive that no harm would be done tonight. Somehow, Larken didn't feel so sure.

* * *

**BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal**

**Episode 3:**

"**Heart of Black, Thalia Strikes Back"**

* * *

Lita Kino darted down the wet sidewalk, doing her best to avoid over-large puddles. She held a magazine over her head so that her hair would remain somewhat dry, though the plan failed immensely. Her chestnut hair was soaked, and Lita could no longer make out the idol on the front of the magazine. In her hand was a plastic bag filled apples that were now drenched to the core. Her long brown skirt and white shirt dripped water off their ends. Lita scowled as she continued down the street. Why, she wondered had she felt the urge to make an apple pie? Why couldn't see have used her senses and stayed at home? It didn't matter now, Lita thought. She was out, in the rain, getting soaked.

An abrupt cry caused Lita to jump and skid to a halt, which was hard to do on the wet sidewalk. The cry was short and shrill, and sounded as if the owner of the cry was in danger. Lita scowled. She had heard about her friend's incidents with the Moon Scouts, could this be them again? Better safe than sorry, Lita thought. She produced an emerald stick with a golden star mounted on top. Inside the star, the symbol of Jupiter was embedded. Lita scanned the area quickly, making sure no one was in sight, then held the stick aloft.

_"Jupiter Star Power!" _She called. Lightening emerged from the stick and raced over her slender figure. Her school uniform was ripped away, replaced by the Sailor Suit of Sailor Jupiter. The lightening ended in a flash of bright light that revealed Sailor Jupiter in the rain. The scout smiled down at her familiar outfit before racing off toward the cry.

* * *

Sailor Jupiter halted as she approached the area where the cry had originated from. She paused and examined the clearing with her emerald eyes. A few meters away a young boy was laying, his eyes agate and emotionless. Jupiter knew he had to be the target of whatever monster had done this.

"Boo," A voice hissed in Jupiter's ear.

Sailor Jupiter whipped around, lightening rod poking out of her tiara, ready for usage. Behind her, hanging upside-down from a tree was a girl that Sailor Jupiter knew had to be Thalia. She was exactly as described by Serena; from the silky black hair to the dark eyes and magenta clothing.

"What did you do to that boy?" Jupiter demanded.

"I thought he might have a Moon Crystal, but he didn't," Thalia replied somewhat sadly. "And now his life energy will be used to power the Dysnomia Kingdom." She brightened at this part. "Is that so bad?"

_"Jupiter Thunder Dragon!" _Sailor Jupiter cried, hoping to use the element of surprise. Electricity from the lightening rod in her tiara spiraled upward, a huge dragon materializing in the air. It growled loudly, its eyes menacing and blank, and tore through the air toward Thalia, whom was not surprised. She simply held out a hand, revealing bright purple nail polish, and caught the dragon. It roared once more, and tried to escape her grip, but Thalia crushed it.

"I was trying to be nice, gosh," She sneered sarcastically, jumping down from her place in the tree. "You Planetary Soldiers are no stronger than the Moon ones! Now that's sad!"

Jupiter clenched her fists, and in the process collected thunderbolts that were compacted into a highly charged and destructive orb in her gloved hands. _"Jupiter Thunderclap Zap!" _She cried, tossing it thunder ball in turn at Thalia.

Thalia yawned and stretched, and as doing so created a small curtain-like shield of purple ripples that absorbed Jupiter's thunder attack.

"If you're finished, it's my turn now," She said, holding her arms out in front of her. Her ghostly pale hands began to glow in a dark magenta aura and a beam of purple energy was shot from each of them. Sailor Jupiter rolled out of the way, the beams soaring over her shoulder and colliding with an oak tree behind her and causing it to burst into flames. Thalia frowned. "Poo, I missed!"

"I won't!" Jupiter replied, standing, the lightening rod on her tiara surrounded by thunder. She crossed her arms and called, _"Jupiter Thunder Crash!" _Quickly, Sailor Jupiter uncrossed her arms, sending a volley of thunder and lightening rocketing at Thalia. Thalia scowled and held her arms out in front of her and was instantly covered in a veil of rippling purple energy, which absorbed her attack. Jupiter was now the one left scowling.

"I'm getting very tired of you!" Thalia hissed, clasping her hands together as if in prayer, though Jupiter was sure prayer was something Thalia hadn't heard of. Sailor Jupiter noted the purple energy leaking out from the cracks where Thalia's fingers were held tightly together, and didn't need to be told that her attack was powerful, nor she had to stop it. The lightening rod once again sparkled with Jupiter's element and the green scout crossed her arms above her head. Thunder from around the tiara spread outward, then quickly returned inward, then outward again, but this time formed a huge, menacing dragon. It roared ominously, lightening flashing in its eyes, and charged at Thalia.

At this moment, Thalia also released her attack. A bright purple flash-that was all Sailor Jupiter could make out. In fact, it was so bright that Jupiter had to shield her eyes in order not to be blinded from Thalia's power. She kept her emerald eyes shut tightly for a few moments, before hesitantly opening them again. The light was gone, so Jupiter no longer had to fear being blinded by it. She hadn't even seen what it had done! But she did notice that the lightening rod on her tiara was cracked. Jupiter scowled, and glared at Thalia. Her enemy, however, paid no attention to this. She was simply examining her heavily polished fingernails when she finally realized Jupiter was still there.

"You're still alive!" Thalia shrieked in angry, pointing a finger at her. "I killed you! I did!"

"No, you killed my attack," Jupiter replied, figuring her attack must have collided with the dragon before hitting her.

Thalia's fists clenched, Jupiter saw the energy once again swelling up inside her palms, but Jupiter also realized she wasn't preparing the same attack over, something different, less powerful, but still dangerous. Without her lightening rod, she couldn't do anything. All of her attacks involved thunder and lightening, and that's why she had her lightening rod-to collect her element! Without it, Jupiter realized, she was lost.

_I'll just have to go physical this round! _Jupiter thought, tensing. Thalia screamed and threw two orbs of energy at her, which Jupiter dodged easily and lunged. Thalia, though, was no pushover. She avoided in return and spread out her arms.

Instantly, Jupiter felt something dig into her skin. Looking down with alarm, she saw purple hair-thin wires had wrapped tightly around her in random places, trapping her against a nearby tree. Snarling, Jupiter attempted to break free of her bindings. This didn't work. They simply tightened around her slender body and more emerged from the shadows, coiling around her like a snake does its prey. Jupiter halted; realizing if more wires kept coming, she'd be wrapped up like a cocoon in no time.

Thalia smiled, her lips curled up in an evil position that just screamed Defeat. She advanced on Sailor Jupiter slowly, allowing her lose to sink into the green scout's skin. "Now let's see," Thalia pondered. "First-I'll take your Moon Crystal, and then I'll drain your life energy and give it to my Mistress! She'll be so happy!" As she spoke, Thalia raised her cupped hands high into the air, eclipsing the sun from Jupiter's view. Thalia began, slowly, to bring down her hands on Sailor Jupiter. Jupiter readied herself for the impact.

"_Luna Shimmering Crescent Cascade!"_

"_Io Double Drill!"_

"_Europa Electric Eruption!" _

A combination of shrill voices exploded in Jupiter's ears. The attack started with Sailor Luna's command-tiny, disk-like crescent moons rained down on Thalia, followed by a beam of fire and ice, swirled together into the most majestic color. Lastly, came electricity, like Sailor Jupiter's own element, but different. Rather than green, it was bright orange, and was compacted into a small, explosive orb.

Thalia's eyes widened in terror and she started to lift her right leg to run, but didn't move fast enough. The attacks bombed down on her like a bird making a dive for a worm. Jupiter was forced to shield her eyes from the bright flash made by the attacks, but could still hear Thalia's shrill screams.

Moments passed before Jupiter dared to look again. Thalia was still standing in front of her, but her magenta cloths were torn and Sailor Jupiter saw blood leaking from her wounds, though rather than vivid red, Thalia's blood was a timid shade of violet. Her dark eyes glowed with hate at Jupiter's rescuers. Sailor Jupiter looked behind her, examining them.

Sailor Luna was just as Serena had described; two blond pigtails with misty eyes and her gray skirt with the pale yellow bows. She stood at the head of the group. Behind her stood two others, a male and female. The girl had blond hair, too, but her was worn strait down and extended just below her shoulders. She wore a brilliant silver skirt, with a deep blue bow on her chest and another on the back of her skirt. Long gloves covered her slender arms, and ended in three strips of silver fabric. She, like Sailor Luna, wore knee-high boots, though rather than gray hers were silver, lined with blue at the top. She appeared almost ghostly. The male was tall, but still shorter than Jupiter, and had unkempt blond hair that stuck out in several directions. He wore a long, orange following cloak and iron armor that was also orange. A white mask obscured his hypnotizing blue eyes, and his face was emotionless. Thalia pointed at them with a shaky finger, blood dripping from the tip of it.

"You," She hissed, her voice overpowered with venom. "I'll get you!" Purple mist then coiled around her ankles, slithering up her body slowly until she was complete engulfed in the violet mist. The mist then glowed brightly before vanishing.

Jupiter let out a sigh of relief and turned to her rescuers. "Thank you," She breathed.

"Your welcome," Sailor Luna told her briefly. She was kneeling on the ground, cradling a agate crystal in her gloved hands. Sighing, she stood. "Here, take this and return it," She then through the gray crystal to Sailor Jupiter, who caught it. Luna then gave a small nod toward her team and they turned to leave.

"Wait," Jupiter called out boldly. They halted. "Who are you?"

"Sailor Luna," Luna replied. "Guardian of the Moon of Light and Sanctity."

"Sailor Io," said the girl in silver. "Guardian of the Moon of Fire and Ice."

"Europa Knight," the boy wearing orange finished. "Guardian of the Moon of Thunder, Lightning and Willpower." With that, they left.

* * *

"Serena!" Luna called into the bathroom. "You're going to be late! Serena" The black cat nudged the door open and slipped inside. Serena was floating in the bathtub, her hair tied in two blond lops and the rest up in a pink bathing cap. Her blue eyes were closed, and she was humming an unfamiliar tone.

"Serena," Luna hissed impatiently.

Serena lazily opened one eye at the cat, then closed it again and asked in an annoyed tone, "What is it Luna?"

"The study group at Raye's begins in 10 minutes," Luna told her. "And you're not out of the bathtub yet!"

At this, Serena's ocean-blue eyes snapped open. "10 minutes? I thought I had 30!" She cried, clumsily leaping out of the bathtub, and in the process splashing Luna with the steaming water.

"Do you mind?" Luna hissed venomously, shaking water from her shining black coat.

Of course, the Moon Princess wasn't listening. Instead, she was venturing into her closet in search of something to wear. What a way to ruin a Saturday, she thought as she pulled her long blue skirt up. Wearing your school uniform! It would have to do. Next Serena attempted to brush her long, blond hair and white teeth at the same time. That didn't work out to well. The brush got caught in the rather large tangles of Serena's hair and the tooth brush fell out of her mouth as Serena tried to free the brush. Finally, Serena was ready.

"Okay Luna, let's go!" She stated energetically, opening the door. "I'm ready!" The downpour had changed into a slight drizzle of raindrops falling from the sky and already the sun was beginning to peek out through the fluffy white clouds that looked like a flock of lambs in a endless blue field. Serena quickly started running down the drying street.

"Wait Serena, the shrine is that way!" Luna called out after her.

"Right!" Serena responded, halting and turning, then continuing to race down the streets. Luna sighed and followed, her four slender legs carrying her quite faster than Serena's two.

Finally, the duo reached Raye's temple. The fiery priestess was standing outside the wooden doors, her arms crossed over her chest and a scowl on her face. She wore her usual temple robes, but today an anti-evil charm hung from a string around her neck.

"You're late," Raye growled.

"Sorry," Serena apologized. "But hey-I got here within thirty minutes didn't I?" She asked almost excitedly. Raye rolled her violet eyes and trailed inside. Serena followed, skipping up the temple stairs with Luna at her heels.

Amy was seated on Raye's bed, her gaze downward at a medical book. Mina sat on the floor, elbows on Raye's table and a dreamy look in her blue eyes. Raye placed herself next to Mina, and Serena sat on her other side. Luna and Artemis were positioned side-by-side next to Amy, who closed her book and gazed around.

"Where's Lita?" The blue haired girl asked. At this, Serena raised her head slightly and too looked around. Sure enough, the brunette wasn't among them.

"Maybe she's running late." Mina suggested, though they all knew Lita was hardly ever late.

"I'm here." A familiar grunt echoed.

"Lita!" Serena exclaimed happily, turning around the see her tall friend.

"What kept you?" Raye asked, sounding annoyed rather than relieved. "Even Serena got here before you!"

"Sorry," Lita apologized, though she didn't sound apologetic at all. "I ran into some trouble on the way here."

"Trouble?" Amy echoed.

Lita nodded. "That girl, erm, Thalia, and the Moon Scouts." But now, everyone was listening immensely.

"What happened?" Luna questioned curiously.

"Well," Lita began, looking at each individual in the room in turn. "I was going to the store to buy some apples for a pie, and then I heard a scream and ran off to check it out. It turned out to be Thalia stealing someone's, er, Moon Crystal, and then I tried to stop her but she kept stopping my attacks until my lightning rod broke and I couldn't attack anymore. I thought she had me cornered, but then two Moon Scouts and a knight showed up and saved me, though they only seemed interested in the Moon Crystal, really."

As Lita finished her tale, she took a deep breath while Luna and Artemis filed this in their minds. After all, the two cats had been trying everything to remember something from the Silver Millennium about a team of Sailors known as the Moon Scouts. As Amy and Raye listened, they were reminded of their own encounter with the Moon Scouts. The one they had run into were attempting to open a portal, and Raye was fixed on them being evil, so the two had tried to stop them with a less-than-successful result. Raye had been badly injured, but was healed by one of their attackers. Serena remembered her incident with Sailor Luna, who claimed to be the proper owner of the Silver Crystal, and Mina, who had not met the Moon Soldiers, just listened contently as the others interrogated Lita.

"What were there names?" Amy questioned, wondering if perhaps they were the same trio Raye and she had seen.

"Europa Knight, Sailor Io, and Sailor Luna," Lita recited. At Sailor Luna's name, Serena raised her head, her blue eyes wide.

"What did they say to you?" The Moon Princess asked.

"Nothing really," Lita replied. "They just told me to give to Moon Crystal back to the victim and their names."

"So you didn't learn anything about them?" Luna sighed in disappointment. Lita shook her head sadly.

"Nothing,"

"Should we tell Michelle, Amara, and Trista about our new enemy?" Mina questioned. "They might know something."

"I doubt it," Artemis meowed. "But they might like to know."

"I'll tell them," Amy told Luna and Artemis. "I usually see Michelle at the pool, so I'll be sure to mention it to her." As Amy spoke, Mina looked nonchalantly down at her watch, and then let out a yelp of surprise.

"Oh no! I'm going to be late! See you later guys!" She cried, raising a "v" sign with her fingers before running off.

"Where's she going?" Raye asked. "A date?"

"No," Artemis sighed. "She volunteered to help coach some students in volley-ball at the elementary school, and it begins today. I better go make sure she doesn't get into any trouble. Bye guys," More slowly then Mina, Artemis leaped of his spot from the bed and took off after the blond-haired girl.

* * *

Thalia was furious. She paced back and forth her magenta dorm. Her heels made loud clicking noises on the floor and her black hair swished around her. How, how could she have been defeated by the Moon Scouts _again? _She had been so close-even if the Moon Crystal wasn't real, it could have provided her mistress with great power, and she had had the Planetary Scout cornered. Then, the Moon Scouts appeared and had defeated her. Scowling, Thalia pulled back the long purple sleeve of her shirt and examined one of her many wounds. It was swollen and red and not improving, despite the many medicines Thalia had used on it. Sighing, she pulled back the sleeve again and continued pacing. 

"How could I have been defeated by those little runts of scouts?" She hissed. "How? I'm much stronger than them!"

_Thalia! _Her master's voice cut through the room. Thalia's violet eyes widened and she flinched before disappearing in a cloud of violet.

Thalia reappeared in the throne room. It was gloomy and dark, as always. The throne loomed before and over Thalia. It was tall and large and black, made of smooth marble, yet the base was stained with blood of the fallen. Tiny, gloomy jewels decorated the throne in various places.The mistress sat in it, her long skinny fingers drummed impatiently against the arm of the marble chair and shadows hid her face, as if she were wearing a sheer, dark veil.

"You summoned me, milady?" Thalia asked, bowing.

The Mistress fumed. "Thalia, you have failed to bring me but one Moon Crystal and have been defeated many times over!"

Thalia's stomach sank. "I know, master. I can do better!"

"For your sake, I hope you can!" The Mistress continued. "Also, you have failed to destroy the Moon Scouts, which I ordered you to do long ago! I'm disappointed in you, Thalia, terribly so. Your sister are doing their jobs wonderfully. Should I replace you with one of them?"

Thalia tensed. "No, please don't! I'm sorry, my lady!" She tried.

The Mistress cut her off. "You have one last chance, Thalia. Bring me a Moon Crystal and don't come back until you have one."

Thalia bowed. "Thank you, my lady. I have already found a target." With one last bow, she vanished.

* * *

Nathan froze, his eyes narrowing. He was a medium sized boy, neither tall nor short, and had nicely kept sandy hair matched with lake-blue eyes. Shivering, Nathan pulled his jacket around his shoulder. Though the air wasn't cold, he shivered anyway. He could feel the tenseness in the air, and knew something was coming.

Picking up the pace, Nathan continued down the streets. He needed to reach his sisters-fast. Then he could discover what in the air was terribly wrong. But as Nathan hurried down the streets, he realized he didn't have time to go for his sisters. Rain was beginning to fall, slowly, just a drizzle, but was picking up. He knew very well what rain meant.

Quickly, Nathan scurried down an alleyway. _Sorry Cammie, Julia, _he thought, but _I'm going to be late._

* * *

Mina took a deep breath. She wore a plain white T-shirt tucked in to a pair of red shorts. Her usual red ribbon held her hair out of her deep blue eyes, and she held a volley ball under one arm. In front of her stood a group of female 2nd graders, wearing similar clothing and talking contently to one another. Beside her stood a teacher, tall and slim with chestnut hair contrasting deeply with her lime-green eyes. They were all standing behind the Juuban District Elementary School, were a volley-ball net had been set up.

Sighing, she turned to Mina and said, "Well, good luck Mina." Then the teacher raised a bright red whistle and blew. At once, the students stopped talking and stood tall and proud in a straight line before Mina. They were about 5 of them, Mina saw.

"Everyone," The teacher called out. "This is Miss Mina. She's going to help me coach all of you." Mina shifted uncomfortably at her name. She wasn't going to be used to be called 'Miss Mina' for awhile, she thought. Mina was brought back to reality as she realized the teacher hadn't stopped talking. "I expect all of you to treat Mina with respect, understand?" Everyone gave a quick and brief nod. The teacher smiled. "Well, anything to say Mina?"

"Um," Mina began, feeling everyone's eyes on her. "Why don't you all tell me your names?"

"Good idea," The teacher commented, then the students in the line recited their names. The first was a short, stubby black-haired American girl named Amanda, the second a taller violet haired named Hanako. The next was very short, but had a sweet smile and short red-brown hair. Her name was Coral. The other two were both nearly the same height. One was a brunette, and seemed very energetic. Her brown eyes were as big as plates and gleamed with excitement. She was named Julia. The other was a timid Blondie, whose blue eyes were focused on her shuffling feet. Her name was Cammie. Mina felt little a bit strange around them, though was unsure why. The both seemed nice, but they both seemed to have a strange aura about them. Mina chose to ignore this.

The day went by pretty quickly, Mina thought. The coach was immensely kind and pleasant. Whenever a kid failed or messed up, she just told them to keep trying. Her name was Coach Asuka. The two had spent the day teaching the kids how to set and pass, with the promise of moving on the serves the next week. Keeping in mind the kids were beginner, they were pretty good. Each rarely missed the ball, and almost always got it over the net.

"Well, that's enough for today." Coach Asuka sighed, wiping sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. Mina nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I think it's time to call it quits." She panted. After all, the Blondie was tried and looking forward for some sleep.

"Oh please, just a little longer!" Julia begged, her eyes brightening and widening, making them appear just like puppy-dog eyes.

"Yes please!" Coral added, her dark eyes widening as well. Coach Asuka sighed.

"I'm sorry kids, but I promised your parents you'd be home by 6:30." Everyone let out a long, dramatic groan.

"How about if I show you something cool?" Mina asked. "Then will you go home?"

Everyone looked up so quickly it almost made Mina feel uncomfortable. "Oh yes please, Miss Mina! Please, please!" They all begged. Mina smiled and tossed the volley ball to Coach Asuka, who caught it. Mina then readied herself.

Asuka tossed the ball over the net at a high speed. Mina paused, stepped back, then ran forward and jumped, close to the ground, as if trying to fly. She then hit the ball up with her right wrist, and brought her left arm over, slamming her wrist into the ball and causing it to fly over the net. Then, Mina brought her legs over her head and flipped, landing smoothly on her feet. With all this done, she placed one hand on her hip victoriously and flashed a "v" sign at the kids, who cheered and applauded her.

"That was awesome, Miss Mina!" Julia, who was jumping up and down, cried out. Even Cammie, who had been silent the entire lesson, was beaming at Mina.

"Yeah," Coral agreed. "Can you teach us?"

"Maybe some other time," Mina told them. "Anyway, you all have to go home now!"

Everyone groaned, but Coach Asuka stepped in. "Go on, children. Your parents are waiting. Come on," Asuka herded everyone around to the front of the building, where some people stood. Coral ran over to a rather short woman, took her hand, and waved good-bye to Mina. Amanda and Hanako found their fathers and waved too as they walked off. Eventually, only Asuka, Mina, Julia, and Cammie were left.

"Cammie, Julia, where are your parents?" Asuka questioned. The four were sitting on the sidewalk, waiting for Julia and Cammie's guardians to come for them.

"Our big brother was going to pick us up!" Julia told them. "But he's late. I wonder what's holding him up." She and Cammie exchanged worried glances, and the strange feeling Mina felt as she first met the two returned to her.

"Well, I hope he gets here soon," Asuka said, smiling down at the two, who smiled back.

"I'm sure he will," Cammie said, so quietly Mina wondered if she imagined it.

At that moment, it began to pour. Immense rain fell from the skies and came down on the streets and buildings and people unfortunate enough to be caught in the showers.

"Rain?" Mina cried, covering her head with her hands. "But it already rained today!"

"Looks like it's raining again," Asuka replied. "Let's go. We can wait inside the school for your brother." She then began gently pushing Cammie and Julia toward the doors. Mina followed, but more slowly. She had a bad feeling about all this, but tried shaking it off. Asuka quickly ran forward and pulled a keychain from her pocket. Then she slipped one of the many keys into the slot and turned it, then pushed the doors open for the others.

"Thank you, Asuka-sensei." Cammie spoke up timidly.

"You're welcome, Cammie," Asuka answered sweetly, but was cut of by a bang of thunder, followed by a streak of lightning that lit up the whole sky. When it died down, there was a figure standing next to Asuka. She was tall and slender and had dark hair that matched her dark eyes. She outfit consisted of magenta pants and long-sleeved shirt. Mina's eyes narrowed at the sight of her, for she had a strange feeling that this girl was Thalia-the one who had given Lita and Serena all the trouble.

When Asuka spotted her, she jumped then blushed at her foolishness. "I'm sorry, you scared me!" She said, smiling.

Thalia smiled back. "I'm afraid I'm about to scare you a lot more." She spoke sweetly, stepping back and holding her arms high above her. Her hands glowed in bright purple auras, and two small beams were shot from them. Time seemed to slow for Mina as the beams hit Asuka squarely in the chest and she fell, pure shock dancing over her ghostly-pale face. When she hit the ground, her eyes turned agate and a small stone hovered above her, which matched her now-gray eyes.

"NO!" Thalia shrieked, stomping her foot and causing a loud bang of thunder while doing so. "NO! NO! NO! I've failed again!"

"Asuka-sensei!" gasped Cammie.

"Coach Asuka!" Julia cried out in horror. Thalia continued raging and thrashing until she noticed the two girls staring horror stricken at her. Then an evil smile found its way onto Thalia's lips.

"I'll just take your Moon Crystals too!" She yelped in joy. "Surely one of you will have a real Moon Crystal!" Thalia then advanced slowly on the two girls, who stood petrified.

"You won't touch them!" Mina roared up, causing Thalia to stop and glare at her. "If you even think about harming children, your heart must be black!"

"And you're going to stop me?" She sneered. Mina returned the cold stare.

"Julia, Cammie, run! Get out of here!" She told them, not once looking away from Thalia.

"But Miss Mina!" Cammie protested.

"Just go!" Mina cried.

Cammie and Julia, who were too scared to protest, scurried off, Julia in the lead dragging Cammie by the wrist behind her. "But Miss Mina…" She trailed.

"Don't worry about Miss Mina," Julia told her. "We can go back for her!" Julia then turned and pulled Cammie into an alley. "Let's power-up!" She called. Cammie nodded.

* * *

Their eyes connected.

Mina was determined to win.

"So," Thalia hissed her voice like ice. "You think you can steal my prey?" She then began to advance, slowly, on Mina. "And you think you can face me and live?" Mina's gaze fell on Asuka's lifeless body, then returned to Thalia.

"Of course! I'll win and live and safe Asuka!" Then, she produced a bright orange stick topped with a golden star. In the center of the star was a orange dot, where the symbol of Venus was engraved. _"Venus Star Power!" _She cried.

Mina held the stick aloft and was instantly surrounded in a chain of yellow stars that circled her body. Then, the chain fell to her ankles before exploding into an outbreak of golden stars that surrounded her slender body and created a sailor suit of yellow. Sailor Venus was left standing triumphantly. "In the name of the planet of Love and Beauty, Venus, I will punish you!" Sailor Venus cried.

Thalia's dark eyes widened, then narrowed. "So, you're a planetary soldier. Still think you can beat me?" She sneered.

"Of course!" Venus called out, producing a chain made of tiny yellow hearts connected together. _"Venus Love Chain Encircle!" _The chain was flung into the air, the hearts that made it up spiraling, then fell again toward earth, but aimed directly at Thalia. It wrapped around her, squeezing tightly. Thalia only grinned, and held a hand out in front of her. The chain was then thrown aside by an invisible gust of wind. Scowling, Venus pointed at Thalia.

"_Venus Crescent Beam…" _She began, energy sparkling at the tip of her gloved finger. _"Smash!" _she roared. A golden beam was instantly shot from her finger and flew toward Thalia, who dodged, but the tiny beam followed her. Hissing, Thalia raised an arm and was covered in a sheer veil of purple that absorbed Venus' attack.

"What?" Venus gasped.

Thalia grinned. "I told you that you couldn't beat me!"

"_Asclepius Love Arrow!" _A shrill, timid voice called out. Thalia's eyes widened and she teleported out of the way- not a moment to soon. An arrow, blinding golden, had landed where she had been standing moments ago. Venus looked over the arrow once more and saw the arrowhead was actually an orange heart. Venus and Thalia both looked over at the attacker.

There were two of them, and neither was very tall. They appeared to be only children. One was blond with shy, but determined blue eyes. She held out a shimmering golden bow, that Venus thought was made only of tiny golden particles. She wore a usual white body suit, with a bright yellow skirt and high heels that spiraled up her legs in ribbons. There was a hazel bow on the back of her skirt, and another on the front that held a shining locket of gold. Long, elegant white gloves covered her skinny arms and ended in three striped of yellow fabric, and she wore jewelry much like Sailor Moon's. Lastly, a golden tiara graced her head, and a yellow jewel that Venus thought to be Ammolite engraved in the center.

The other was dressed similar, but her color scheme was different. Her skirt was orange, and she had a pair of ankle boots on rather than high heels. Her collar was bright green, as were the bows on the rest of her outfit, and the tiara on her forehead contained a single piece of Amber. She was a brunette, and her eyes were wide with excitement.

"Representing the Moon of Joy and Beauty, Sailor Castalia!" She called out.

"With the glory of the Moon of Love and Purity, Sailor Asclepius!" called out the girl in yellow timidly.

"The Moon Scouts!" They cried together.

"Not again!" Thalia raged. "Why does this keep happening?"

As Thalia spoke, Sailor Castalia stepped forward and held out her arm, taking aim. _"Castalia Beauty Blaster!" _She cried, a orange beam emitting from the tip of her finger and split into many beams that all spiraled toward Thalia, who hissed in anger.

"You won't get me this time!" She held out both hands, and the beams froze mid-air.

"What?" Castalia cried out in horror. Thalia grinned, and pointed at her. The beams began moving again, but this time they flew toward Sailor Castalia, Sailor Asclepius, and Sailor Venus. Venus snarled and jumped out of the way, the beam following her.

"I have to shake it off," She muttered to herself, jumping once again out of the way. But dodging didn't work at all. At full contact, the beam hit Venus, knocking her to the ground. The Moon Scouts weren't having much luck shaking off the beams either. Each could only avoid as it came their way.

"_Cruithne Crystal Winds!" _A new voice cried. Immediately, winds picked up and formed two buzz-saws in the air, spiraling toward Thalia. As Venus watched them, she realized that crystals were materializing around the edges. Thalia screamed in terror and ducked, one of the blades flying over her head, but the other hitting her in the back and sending her flying. The beams that were chasing Castalia and Asclepius vanished, and the two scouts sighed in relief. Venus quickly scrambled to her feet and looked over at Thalia. She lay motionless, but Sailor Venus wasn't taking any chances.

"_Crescent Beam Smash!" _She roared, pointing at Thalia. Golden energy sparked at the tip of her finger, then a whole beam of light shot from it, topped with a crescent moon, and flew toward Thalia.

The two little Moon Scouts followed Venus' lead.

"_Ascleupius Love Arrow!" _cried Sailor Ascleupius, aiming another of her golden arrows at Thalia.

"_Castalia Beauty Blaster!" _Sailor Castalia shouted, many beams of golden light shooting like stars out of her fingertips. Castalia's beams wrapped around Ascleupius' arrow, causing it to shimmer more than usual, and both shot into the motionless heap of Thalia.

Thalia screamed once more and pulled Ascleupius' arrow out of her, revealing a large, blood-stained hole in her shirt and gave a death glare toward Sailor Venus and the Moon Scouts. "I'll get you…I'LL GET YOU!" She shrieked, pointing at them, and then vanished in a cloud of magenta.

Sighing in relief, Venus turned toward the Moon Scouts. A third was standing with them now, a boy, not so tall, but still handsome. His sandy hair was neatly kept and a white mask, like the one Tuxedo Mask wore, hid his kind eyes. He wore sparkling yellow arm, shimmering dazzlingly in the sunshine that was piercing the rain clouds and a long golden cloak blew out behind him in the wind.

"Thank you," Venus told them. "I probably couldn't have defeated her without you."

"It was no problem!" Sailor Castalia replied energetically. "It was fun, too." Venus couldn't help but smile. Somehow, this little scout reminded her of someone she had met before, but she couldn't quite place it right now. Later, she thought.

"I need to thank you, too," the boy said. "Without you, my sisters might have been defeated while I was gone."

"Oh no, I didn't help them at all!" Venus protested.

"Still, thank you," he said.

"Could you tell me your name?" Venus asked curiously. Hey, here was a night in shining armor, how was she suppose to go without a name?

"Cruithne Knight." He said. Though his voice was cold, he smiled.

"Cruithne Knight," Venus repeated. "Thanks. Anyway, see you around?"

"Perhaps," he replied. "But for now, we must go."

"Bye!" Castalia called waving as the knight hurried her away. Smiling, Venus waved back. She walked over, picking up the crystal Thalia had left behind, and held it over Asuka. The crystal glowed and drifted slowly toward Asuka, before vanishing. Sailor Venus paused for a moment, before she heard Asuka groaning and rubbing her head.

"What happened?" She grunted.

"It doesn't matter now," Venus told her. "You're safe." With that, she flashed a "v" sign and left.

* * *

"What do you mean you were attacked?" Artemis cried as Mina explained to her feline friend what had happened.

"I was attacked," Mina replied, staring into her mirror as she adjusted the red ribbon in her hair. "It's simple, Artemis."

"By who?" The feline demanded.

"By Thalia," Mina said, sounding quite annoyed. "And then the Moon Scouts and a knight showed up to help me."

"What else happened?" Artemis interrogated.

"I told you already," Mina sighed. "Thalia showed up, stole Asuka's Moon Crystal, I transformed and tried to stop her, failed, the Moon Scouts showed up, tried to help, failed too, then a knight came and helped us defeat her."

"That's all?"

"Yep, ever last bit!"

Artemis sighed. "Mina, I want you to keep a sharp guard up around the Moon Scouts. They may seem friendly, but after what happened with Serena and Sailor Luna, we can't be sure. So-"

"I know, I know, be careful." Mina sighed.

"You're catching on," Artemis meowed, grinning.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Note 2: **Sorry all, but there's probably a bunch of grammar/spelling errors in this because I didn't proof-read this time. I was exhausted when I finished and tried to, but couldn't. Terribly sorry. I'd also like to let you know that it might be awhile until I update again, because I'm going to try to squeeze all the outers into the next episode. Until next time!


	6. Warning Call, the Pieces of a Puzzle

**Author's Notes:** Hi! Haven't talked in awhile, eh? Sorry about that. As you can see, I had trouble with the title and with this chapter.

**Disclaimer: **Again. I'm just copying and pasting. Sadly, Sailor Moon does not belong to me. Yes, I know that's horrible. Sailor Moon Manga is © Naoko Takeuchi and Kodansha. English version is © Tokyopop Manga. I do not own any of the characters contained within the manga or anime version of Sailor Moon. The anime is © Toei and Kodansha. English adaptation is © DiC entertainment and Cloverway. Happy now?

But, my characters are my characters, as it the plot line and anything else I threw in there. So, no touchy! MINE!

* * *

A lean figure crept through the early morning mist, keeping as inconspicuous as possible. Her eyes glittered; examining the area for any sign of predators. In one hand, she held a sword. The sparkling talisman was held at the ready, for the wind whispered in the girl's ear of another presence here. And the wind didn't lie. 

A deep, low growling rang through the forest, and a dark figure leapt at the approaching Sailor Soldier. It was a wolf; however, it was unlike other wolves. Its pelt was midnight black, its eyes crimson and blood shot. Its fur seemed shorter than other wolves, and its two back legs were taller than its short front ones. A werewolf.

_"SPACE SWORD BLASTER!" _Sailor Uranus roared. The blade of the sword took on a bright glowed, and as Uranus brought it down through the air, a deadly blast of energy shot from it, spiraling through the air and knocking the wolf down. Uranus wasted no time. She raised her hand, gathering energy in her palm, and slammed her fist into the ground. _"World Shaking!"_ The attack took on the form of a planet, and shot toward the werewolf, who had no second to prepare itself. It let out an agonized howl before it completely disintegrated.

Uranus knelt down where the wolf had been, digging through a few leaves before she found a dull, cracked, agate stone. She held it aloft, it's gloomy gray light adding to the eeriness of the forest.

A few light footsteps echoed through Uranus' ears as her partner emerged from the bushes. Sailor Neptune strode elegantly, as always, to Uranus' side.

"I see you have a crystal," She said, voice barely higher than a whisper. "But where's its keeper?"

Uranus shook her head. "I don't know, but this crystal is cracked anyway. It won't do them any good now. He's probably dead by now anyway."

Neptune bowed her head in respect and was silent for a moment, before grabbing Uranus' wrist. "Uranus," She whispered, distress tingling in her clam voice. "This is just like before, isn't it? People are going to have to give up their lives, aren't they?"

"Probably," was her solemn reply "But then again, those people could be lucky, like us." At this, she smiled down at Neptune.

The snapping of a twig caused both scouts to look up, alert and tense. Though the shadowy swirls of night hid most of the figure, Neptune and Uranus could still make out the silhouette of a sailor suit standing in a tree. In less than a second, the scouts had their talismans drawn and were ready to attack.

The figure, however, didn't seem to have any interest in a fight. Instead, she turned and, with a mighty leap, began running, disappearing into the night sky.

"Let's go!" Uranus ordered, taking off after the mysterious scout. Neptune followed, but the racer was much faster, and she found herself acting as the caboose. Scowling, Neptune picked up her pace.

* * *

Sailor Uranus' long legs carried her graceful over the landscape, hot in pursue of the scout. Finally, she caught up to her. The girl was sitting in a tree and, although it was still dark, Uranus could make out the green and yellow colors of her sailor suit, and her sandy blonde hair. Her were legs crossed casually, as if she were attending a tree party, and she looked down at Uranus with interest. 

"You were actually able to keep up with me, hun?" She spoke, more to herself than Uranus. "You're pretty fast then."

"Who are you? What are you after?" Uranus questioned, holding her sword at the ready. She didn't waist any energy by using a calm, kind tone. Her voice was blunt and unfriendly.

"Isn't it obvious? We're after the Moon Crystals," The scout's own voice was grave too, yet with a hint of amusement, and something about her gave Uranus the sudden sensation of such frustration that she longed to kill someone.

"Why?" persisted the tomboy.

The scout's eyes leveled with Uranus', and she narrowed them, as if to look straight through Sailor Uranus' soul. The piercing blue color of her eyes was enough to make any child burst out in tears, but Uranus kept her demeanor strong. "Brought together, the crystals will create the Cosmic Crystal, the ultimate source of power in this dimension. That is what we seek." She explained.

"Why?" Uranus continued with her interrogation. The wind howled restlessly, lifting Uranus' sandy locks and revealing the aggravated look on her face. The girl stood, wind also blowing her hair away to show a small smile playing on her lips.

"I'm afraid that's none of your business, Sailor Uranus," She said. "Please remember to stay out of our way. I'd hate for you to get hurt." She hesitated for a moment, before adding. "By the way, my name is Sailor Ariel." And the wind blew again, stronger than before, and colder. Uranus felt the air chilling, and looked up at Sailor Ariel to find her long gone.

* * *

**BSSM: Shards of a Cosmic Crystal**

**Episode 4:**

"**Warning Call, the Pieces of a Puzzle" **

* * *

The teacher stood at the front of the classroom, facing the chalk bored, scribbling down the homework assignment. However, only a few of the students in the classroom noticed this. It was, after all, 7th Period of the day, and in one more week school would be out. The girls were huddled in the back of the classroom, giggling blissfully, while the boys somehow managed to start a paper war. 

Among the few who took note to the assignment was Larken Taylor, one of the many new transfer students from America-and one of the few students who took her assignments seriously. Her head was bent over her notebook as she continued to copy down the assignment. Beside her, was Emily. She too treated her schoolwork with importance, but not nearly as much as Larken did. She was writing down two things-the assignment and the note to her neighbor, a boy that looked about the same age.

On the other side of the classroom, a certain blond princess had her head resting on the desk, snoring loudly, though it was concealed by the girls' recurring giggles, and behind the American transfers, was Lita Kino. The brunette teenager had taken notice to the assignment, but chose to ignore it. Instead, her emerald eyes were focused simply on Larken, watching her like a hawk watches its prey. Ever since Amy had informed her of the disk, she had been cautious of the girl and her friends, who seemed to have developed a sudden friendship with Serena. Because of this, Lita tried her best to keep a watchful eye on her ditzy friend. The Moon Princess seemed to care less than nothing that Larken was after the Silver Crystal, so Lita found it upon herself to make sure they kept their distances.

Finally, the piercing noise of a bell sliced through the atmosphere. Serena's head popped up, her sparkling blue eyes glittering with joy, and she was out the door before the teacher even announced, "Class dismissed." A small smile played Lita's lips, and she began to gather her belongings. As she did, Emily whipped around to face Larken, whispering quite loudly.

"So, did Apollo find anything yet?"

Larken sighed, brushing some of her blond locks out of her face. "No, not yet." Sighing again, she continued. "You know, it's just so aggravating. Apollo and Stacey have traced the Silver Crystal to this very district, but we still can't find it."

Lita paused for a moment, her mind replaying what she had just overheard. So they really _were_ after the Silver Crystal! Lita continued attacking inconspicuous as Emily continued the conversation.

"What are you talking about? We've already found it! Sailor Moon has it, remember? So all we have to do is find her and grab from her! Then we just have to find the other Moon Crystals…"

At this, Larken's hazy eyes widened. "No! We can't do that!"

"Why not?" asked Emily, clearly aggravated.

Larken's eyes returned to normal size, and she seemed to have taken a sudden interest in her fingernails. "Well, you know. It just wouldn't be right…"

"What do you mean 'wouldn't be right?' The Crystal is rightfully yours!" Emily had to resist very hard from screaming some sense into her comrade.

Larken opened her mouth to respond, but it never came. Instead, a tall boy-the one Emily had been passing notes to early-walked up. "Why don't we continue this conversation somewhere else?" As he spoke, he looking cautiously toward Lita. The brunette felt her cheeks burn with the embrassment at being caught, and returned to copying down the ignored homework.

"Right, let's go," Emily seemed to have suddenly regained her self-control, for her voice was back to its normal tone. After the three had departed, Lita pushed the have-done assignment into the bag with the rest of her things, and followed them out.

* * *

Raye was again tense. But that was no longer anything out of the ordinary. Ever since watching Phoebe and Michael morph into Moon Scouts, she had remained tense around them. 

It was lunchtime at the TA Girls Institute. Raye was seated at the table in the farthest corner, her haven from the giggly, preppy girls that also attended the school. Her only company was Phoebe, the kind, modest girl who was in reality the ruthless Sailor Phobos.

Raye couldn't believe it. She had bonded with this girl, despite her attempt to maim her early. Phoebe was generous, and was most of the time remained bliss and bubbly, even telepathic! However, Sailor Phobos was the opposite. She was blunt and uncaring. How could such a nice girl turn into such a monster? Phoebe seemed to be the two-sided girl.

"Hey, Raye," Phoebe asked, breaking the awkward silence between them. "What are you thinking?"

Raye looked up, deep into Phoebe's violet eyes. Phoebe could easily tell what she was thinking, she was, after all, telepathic and psyche, so while around her Raye tried her hardest to close of her mind. "Nothing really. You?"

She shrugged. "Same old stuff." She looked down into her drink while Raye glanced down at her own un-eaten food. Only once she looked up again she saw that Phoebe's had fallen over, her head laying face-down on the table, completely motionless.

"Phoebe?" Raye asked, worried, shaking the girl slightly. "Phoebe?" She didn't respond. Quickly, Raye checked for a pulse and found none. Was Phoebe dead? No, she couldn't be. Raye could still sense her aura, strong as ever, but with another presence. It took her a moment to figure out what was happening.

Phoebe's mind had been invaded. Being telepathic, she was an easy target. And Phoebe had to fight out the invader, which must have been pretty strong. She had gone into an unconscious state so that she could more easily fight out the invader in her mind. All of her body's energy had gone to helping Phoebe keep control of her body, even the energy that made Phoebe's heart beat! Right now, Phoebe needed help that only Raye could give. There was only one choice, Raye decided. She too had to enter Phoebe's mind and help her fight off whatever was seeking to control her. If she didn't, Phoebe might die! Jamming her violet eyes shut, Raye searched again for Phoebe's aura, this time with her mind. She found it quickly, for it was a mix of good and evil struggling against each other.

Raye focused all her energy on entering Phoebe's mind, and finally penetrated the psyche wall. Raye felt her soul move from her body to Phoebe's, and she fell victim to gravity's pull as she entered her own unconscious state.

* * *

Michael jumped abruptly, causing the chair he was sitting on the fall backwards. Stacey and Apollo looked up in confusion. "Is something wrong?" The blue haired girl asked, clearly concerned. 

"No, it's just…I think something may be wrong with Phoebe." He stuttered, finding it hard to speak.

"Do you need to go see her?" Apollo asked.

"No, I'm sure she's fine." Michael said, picking up the chair.

"Are you sure? We can spare you for awhile…" Apollo offered, but Michael firmly shook his head.

"No, you and Stacey need me here right now. The Moon Crystals won't find themselves, but Phoebe can look after her skin for awhile." Apollo and Stacey shared concerned glances, but continued working, as did Michael. But he couldn't shake off the feeling that something bad was happening to his sister.

* * *

"It's such a nice day!" Serena commented, stretching and yawning. She sat alongside Larken, Emily, and Lita on the picnic blanket they had spread out in Juuban Park. People trotted past, laughing and chatting joyfully. Many happy looking couples pasted by while some college students hurried to catch a bus. "I just wish Darien was here!" 

"You talk about this 'Darien' a lot, Serena," Larken pointed out. "Are you too an item?"

"Well, you could say that," Serena replied. "But I just like to call us the cutest, most passionate couple in the whole universe!"

A chorus of giggles rose up from her companions. "It's true!" Serena huffed. Changing the subject, she added. "So, Lita, what goodies did you bring for our picnic?"

"I brought a platter of chocolate cookies just for you, Serena."

"Did someone say chocolate cookies?" All the girls jumped in surprise and looked up at the new voice. The newcomer was a boy about their age, with sandy blond unkempt hair and big, puppy-dog blue eyes.

"Oh, get lost James! She didn't bring any for you!" Emily told him firmly.

"You're so mean, Emily!" The boy, James, huffed.

"So, what is it you want this time?" Larken asked, changing the subject to a more pleasant topic. "It's unlike you just to show up behind us."

"Well, Apollo sent me to look for you and-oh, you have company." He winked, and Lita and Serena cheeks burned bright red with blush. "Anyway, he told me to find you guys. So I did."

"I guess that means we have to go," Larken sighed. "Thanks for lunch Lita. We'll see you later!"

"You have to leave?" Serena said, sounding disappointed, even a bit hurt.

"Sorry," Emily offered lamely. "There's somewhere important we have to be. How 'bout I make it up to you?" Grinning, she produced three tickets and handed them to the upset blond princess. "These are for the concert tonight at the Juuban District Music Hall. I scored a few off a friend who's in it. How about you come along with this 'Darien' and Lita?"

"Oh wow, this is the concert Michelle is playing in!" Serena noted, examining the ticket. "See you there!" And with that, the trio ran off.

* * *

Raye found herself in a maze of mirrors, though none reflected herself. In each mirror a different of Phoebe's life was playing. She saw images of Phoebe as a little girl, of Phoebe's brother and friends, and another of Sailor Phobos attacking herself, Sailor Mars. The most interesting one, Raye thought, was of a strange red castle laying in pieces. All around her, Raye found Phoebe's entire life being played in mirrors. 

_Focus, _Raye thought. _You need to get to Phoebe's inner mind. You can't let Phoebe's thoughts distract you. _And so Raye focused. She thought of helping her friend, the joyful times she had had with her and any other thoughts that would help her find her way to where Phoebe's attacker was.

Seconds later, Raye heard satisfying 'click' and a mirror swung open, revealing a long, dark hallway. Raye ran through it as fast as her legs would carry her, working out in her head how she should fight out Phoebe's invader. After a few seconds of running, Raye had reached the end of the hallway and had entered a strange, circular room.

The room seemed to be made of some sort of glass or crystal, for everything was either see-through or creating a white glow of some sort. A strange symbol was carved in silver on the floor, and the room seemed to go on forever up and down. In the center of the room was Phoebe. She was held down by strange chains of what seemed to be solid darkness. She was scowling and struggling, though her efforts appeared futile. Above her stood a hooded female figure wearing a black robe that concealed her completely. She grinned, though Raye couldn't see it she could sense it, and spoke.

"Why struggle? Soon I'll have control of your body and you'll be trapped in this maze of your mind forever!"

Phoebe scowled and continued to thrash. "You may control my body, but you'll never control my mind!"

"Really?" The hooded girl cooed, clearly amused. "I think I will. Soon you will crumble to my will!"

"I wouldn't be so sure of that!" Raye cried out, to everyone's, including her own, shock.

At the sight of her, Phoebe's eyes widened. "Raye! Get out of here now! You can't help! Get out! Save yourself!"

"Why look!" The girl called out blissfully. "An uninvited guest! How rude! I guess I'll just have to deal with you then!"

"I'm afraid I'm not that easy to deal with!" spat Raye, summoning her power stick. _"Mars Star Power!" _Raye bit down her lip, anxious to see if her transformation would work while she was in Phoebe mind.

It did. Flames spiraled out of the stick, surrounding Raye's slender figure. She felt the fire, blazing hotter than ever before, race across her skin and through her veins. Finally, in a great fiery blast, stood Sailor Mars.

Phoebe's eyes widened again, in shock and confusion. "Raye, you're Sailor Mars?" She whispered in disbelief. Mars sensed the attacker grin again.

"Well, if this isn't a treat!" She exclaimed. She threw off her robe, revealing her navy mini skirt and tank top, as well as the matching jewelry. She had midnight black hair that cascaded down her back like a waterfall down a mountain and silvery eyes dancing with glee. "I am Euphrosyne, the successor of Thalia, the second of the Graces and the loyal servant to the Mistress of the Dysnomia Kingdom! Sailor Mars, I shall be the one to destroy you once and for all!"

Mars' eyes narrowed. _"Mars Fire Ignite!" _She cried, wasting no time at all. Fire coiled from her fingertips, streaming toward Euphrosyne, who held out a hand-revealing bright green nail polish-and created a circle shield around herself. The fire hit it and pressed into it for a few moments before vanishing.

"Is that the best you can do?" she sneered.

"Not close! _Mars Celestial Fire Surround!" _Fiery circles shot out from her hands, spinning through the air. Again, Euphrosyne raised her hand, but this time the flames were turned to solid gold and hit the floor with a loud 'clunk.'

Sailor Mars took a moment to aim before again tossing out her scrolls. _"I call upon the power of Mars! Akuryou Taisan, Fireball charge!" _She called out, her voice ringing through the room. This time, Euphrosyne didn't move fast enough to dodge. The scroll hit her chest, and momentarily paralyzed her. Sighing in relief, Mars tossed another scroll at the chains that held Phoebe, and they burned up once touched by the anti-evil parchment.

Phoebe stood, an expression of shook on her face. She looked at Mars as though it was the first time she had ever seen a person. She did not speak, for she was still in awe, and even after she had recovered from her shocked state, she said nothing. Phoebe reached out and touched Mars' shoulder. "But you're aura…" She shook her head. "No, I must be imagining it."

Phoebe spoke no more. Instead, she walked over to the frozen figure of Euphrosyne. "You," She said, her voice changing from small in disbelief to venomous in disgust. "Will leave my mind and never return. You will never destroy me or my friends!" And she closed her eyes; taking on a violet aura that flared out and enveloped Mars and Euphrosyne. "BEGONE!" She ordered. And in a flash, both Sailor Mars and Euphrosyne had vanished.

* * *

Michelle strummed the strings of her violin gently, sending a melodic ring out into the empty auditorium. The concert started in two hours, and Michelle still felt uncomfortable with her piece, which was rare for her. She assumed it had something to do with the encounter of the mysterious soldier the previous morning. Since then, she and Amara had been searching the district for any sign of the new enemy without much luck. 

After missing another note, Michelle sighed in frustration and lowered her violin. She had been practicing for the past two hours and still was without success, also unusual for her. She suspected this had something to do with the sea raging in her ears, warning her of something to come-soon. On top of that, she and Amara had had the same recurring dream for a week now. It was like a puzzle, Michelle figured, and all the pieces were beginning to come together to reveal the big picture: a warning.

Footsteps echoed through Michelle's ears and she turned toward the doorway, where a girl stood.

"Oh," she said, her voice soft and innocent. "I didn't think anyone else would be practicing." She was short, shorter than most her age at least. Her wavy light colored hair was tied back into a loose ponytail, and through her blue eyes shone wistfully through her glasses. In one hand she held a violin and in another its bow, which led Michelle to believe she too was performing in the concert this evening. Something about this girl made little flags pop up in Michelle's head, but what she couldn't tell. It took a minute for the turquoise haired girl to register the strange aura she was emitting, one much like her own.

"No, it's alright," Michelle smiled. "I was just finishing up anyway. You're in the concert tonight." It was a statement.

She nodded. "And you are too." She added. The conversation did not continue, so the girl raised her violin and played.

The harmonic sound washed over the auditorium, the song, though one Michelle didn't recognize, was in perfect tone and rhythm. Michelle felt entranced by it. It reminded her of something out of a romance novel, like a sad scene when the two lovers parted. And to Michelle's surprise, that's just what she saw.

The room seemed to have faded away completely, with only the girl and her violin remaining, though she suddenly appeared far-off. The scenery had changed to that of an ancient castle, and a young woman, who looked very much like Princess Serenity, standing with a man that was very similar to Prince Endymion, was embraced tightly, tears welling from her crystal blue eyes. The man released her and handed a brilliant red rose to her, his mouthing moving though Michelle could make out nothing her was saying. The girl took the rose, and said something to him before her embraced her again and pecked her gently on the lips.

The music stopped and the scene faded away. Michelle found herself back in the auditorium, right were she had been standing seconds before. The girl had lowered her violin and was turning to leave, but Michelle's words stopped her.

"Who are you?" She questioned, no kindness at all in her voice.

"Morgan Miller. And you?"

"Michelle Kaioh," Michelle returned. And with the exchanged words, the girl left.

* * *

_She stood on a circular platform, made entirely of stain-glass that glowed though no sunlight shone through it. The stain-glass displayed a beautiful picture of a crescent moon-The symbol of Luna-and other symbols around it. Hovering over the middle of the stain-glass platform was a crystal. It appeared white, though the light it emitted was of every color and shade in the spectrum. _

_Near the crystal stood a girl with willowy hair and piercing white eyes-her only visible features. She held out a hand, and the crystal floated toward her, landing just above her palm and rotating in place. Her hand folded around the crystal, it's light leaking through the cracks in her fingers, and then unfolded, letting lose a light so blinding that anyone witnessing this wound surely have been blinded. _

_And then the light vanished, and everything was gone-destroyed. Even the broken pieces of the stain-glass platform had been obliterated by the woman and her crystal. Nothing remained but the solemn darkness of nothingness. _

_And the words 'The Cosmic Crystal' rang through her ears._

Amara's eyes snapped open, immediately alert to her surroundings. She was in her bedroom, light flooding in through the wind, and little 12-year-old Hotaru standing over her bed, concerned.

"Amara-Papa, you're okay?" She whispered. Amara nodded, not able to resist smiling. Hotaru always made her smile, and for that it made Amara sad that she and Michelle were just Hotaru's babysitters while Dr. Tomoe recovered from his recent stroke. "It was the dream again, wasn't it." It wasn't a question.

Amara nodded. "It's a warning. It's telling us to find the Cosmic Crystal and destroy it-or it will destroy us."

"I'm not so sure," Hotaru said, shuffling her feet nervously. "It could be showing us what the Cosmic Crystal can do and telling us we can't let it fall into the wrongs hands…"

"Maybe," Amara said blankly, glancing at the clock. It was six o'clock now, Michelle's concert started at seven, and Amara liked to arrive early rather than on time. She looked down at what she was wearing-a white shirt and black pants. They would do.

"Come on kid," Amara said, leaving the unmade bed and ushering Hotaru out the door. "We've got to get to Michelle's concert."

"Shouldn't you make the bed first?" Hotaru reasoned. She shrugged. "When Michelle-Mama gets mad at you, don't blame me!" Amara chuckled.

Normally, Amara would ride her motorcycle to the Music Hall. She liked the feel of the wind rushing up against her skin and the satisfying roar it made. But, seeing as she Hotaru would be riding with her, she didn't want to use it. So instead she climbed into the bright yellow sports car and pulled out the driveway.

Amara always drove over speed limit. It was one of her many bad habits. Michelle usually rolled her eyes and didn't comment, but Hotaru was different. Her violet eyes were round and frightful, and she sputtered. "Amara-Papa, maybe you should slow down…"

"Nah," Amara said blankly, smiling at Hotaru's concern. She pressed down on the hard, not hard enough to slam it, but hard enough to make the car go skidding to a stop in front of the red light. Hotaru's eyes were still wide, but her expression portrayed a kind of disgust that made Amara lean back in laughter.

Hotaru shook her head disapprovingly, but abruptly stopped, a pensive look dawning on her face. "Amara-Papa, do you feel that?"

Amara stopped laughing, taking on a serious demeanor and narrowed her eyes. She did feel it; a strange sensation of frustration that she couldn't quite describe, and with it a strange, powerful aura. The same feel she had encountered with the Sailor Soldier earlier.

Eyes narrowed, Amara turned toward the source-the driver in the car next to her. She was visibly tall, and had wavy blond hair that cascaded down her back like a waterfall does a mountain. Her eyes were a piercing yet light shade of icy blue, and she suddenly seemed to notice Amara's gaze upon her, for she turned her head slightly and met her eyes. They held each others gaze for awhile before her car lurched into sudden motion and flew off down the streets. Amara stared after her for a moment, expression blank, until Hotaru spoke.

"Uh, Amara-Papa, the light changed." Hotaru told her, pointing toward the now-green stoplight. Amara nodded and pressed down on the pedal, the car jerking into motion.

* * *

As Amara pulled into the parking lot the first thing she noted was the light blue sports car in the space next to her. The same car the girl had been driving. And then she noticed the girl leaning up against it, eyes closed and aura strong, clearly waiting. As Amara pulled in, she opened her icy eyes and looked straight at Amara. Amara gave a brief nod at her as she climbed out of the car. 

"Hotaru," she told the twelve-year-old. "I want you to go inside and find Michelle, okay?" Hotaru look up at Amara, her violet eyes scanning Amara with concern. But she seemed to sense the older Soldier wanted to be left alone and departed without protest. Amara turned to approach the girl, but she was already speaking, her voice icy like her eyes.

"Amara Ten'oh. You're Sailor Uranus." It was not a question.

"So, you know who I am. How about you return the favor?" Amara said acidly.

"My name is Nicole, and I am Sailor Ariel. Sailor Uranus, I am here to tell you not to interfere with our mission. If you do, I'll see to it that you regret it."

"And your mission is?" questioned Amara, raising her eyebrows. She did not reply, just straightened herself and looked harshly into Amara's eyes. Words seemed to pass between them.

Amara's cold eyes narrowed, and she questioned, "The Cosmic Crystal, just what is it?"

"It," Nicole briefed her. "Is a crystal made from all the Moon Crystals coming together as one. It is the ultimate power of this universe and many others. It is our mission to find it and return it to itself rightful wielder."

"And who's that?"

"You'll find out soon enough," the girl reply, a hint of amusement creeping into her voice. Amara was prepared to interrogate Nicole farther, but didn't get the chance to. She had turned away, walking into the auditorium, saying in her icy voice, "I think we'll meet again sometime soon, Uranus. You can get your answers then."

And then the wind blew. Normally Uranus woulnd't have been startled by this-but it was an unearthly wind, stronger and colder than normal. Her short sandy blew out over her eyes, blocking her sight for a minute, and when Amara had pushed the wild strands aside, the wind had stopped and Nicole was gone, a small piece of paper left where she had been standing moments ago. In shock, Amara reached down and picked it up, reading the text on it quickly before walking in the auditorium. And, from the rooftops, Nicole smiled.

* * *

Michelle sighed. She had finished her piece quickly and smoothly, the crowding 'oohing' and 'awing' at it, commenting on how peaceful and angelic she appeared. However, on the inside Michelle felt anything but relaxed. She couldn't shake Morgan's strange aura, and throughout her performance Amara had been giving her 'the look' telling her something was wrong. And to top that, she could feel the sea rocking uneasily and anxiously inside her. 

The door swung open without an indication, telling Michelle Amara had arrived. Again, she gave her 'the look' with her crystal eyes and tossed a piece of paper in her direction. Michelle snatched it out of the air, as if slapping a fly, and read it. She finished, and the two sat in silent thought for a moment.

"Well?" Michelle finally questioned.

"Well," Amara repeated. "Looks like we'll be getting the final piece of the puzzle tonight."

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Author's Notes 2: **I took forever to write this and I still hate it with a burning passion. It sucks. This chapter wasn't flowing like I tried to get it too. But I got back from camp (again) and decided to get it up. So, sorry for all the suckyness.


End file.
